The Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad is among the most renowned and largest zoos in all of India. It was opened for the public in the year 1963 and has been named after the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehru was a nature lover from the core of his heart. He always supported programs for the preservation animal life.
He believed that human beings and animals had equal rights on nature and that man cannot use his resources to bring harm to other species. He believed that being human was a big responsibility and that everyone should try to conserve wildlife in their small possible way. The establishment of the Nehru Zoo was a great step in fulfilling his dreams of making India a biologically diverse nation where all kinds of life lived in harmony.
The park is spread in an area of 24 acres. All of this land was provided by the Government of India under Prime Minister Nehru and hence the park was later named the Nehru Zoological Park after his death in 1964. The zoo has also generated a lot of employment in the region and made Hyderabad quite popular amongst nature lovers. The Hyderabad zoo has often won international awards in recognition of its efforts for the preservation of nocturnal animals and rodents.
The zoo consists of some rare species of animals ranging from mammals to amphibians and reptiles. The zoo is quite popular for its unique collection of Rodents and nocturnal animals. The species preserved at the zoo include Deer, Antelopes, Pythons and fruit bats, slender Loris, leopard cats, mottled wood owls, fishing owls, and many other species of horned owls. Photography within the zoo is permitted with certain restrictions imposed.
The zoo also has the fossils of some prehistoric animals which are kept on display all round the year. The people of Hyderabad just love the zoo. I saw the passion for animals in their eyes on my visit to the Hyderabad Zoo. I believe that increasing awareness about endangered species is the best way of preserving and protecting them.