In a major development, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is all set to operate battery-operated cars inside Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo, popularly known as Ranibaug, said Deepak Kesarkar, Guardian Minister of Mumbai (city) on Tuesday.According to civic officials, the funds for these vehicles will be acquired from the collector’s office and a total of four battery-operated vehicles will be deployed inside the zoo premises from July. This facility will be available between 9:30 am and 6 pm for children aged between three and 12 years, senior citizens and specially-abled.
Each vehicle will have a capacity to carry eight persons at a time. However, the officials also maintained that a decision on the fare policy of these vehicles is yet to be taken.In May 2023, the city's only botanical garden and zoo-Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Vanaspati Udyan (Ranibaugh) and zoo at Byculla - witnessed its highest ever number of visitors, with a record-breaking 4.5lakh individuals flocking the place. This surge in the number of visitors can be attributed to the recent birth of two tiger cubs and three penguins, which garnered significant attention.The zoo authorities maintain data on visitor numbers, revealing a substantial increase compared to May 2022, when 3.94 lakh individuals visited the zoo.