Another escaped jackal rescued; search on for two at Delhi Zoo

The joint director of National Zoological Park has been asked to file a report on how the animals slipped into the restricted forest patch.

One more jackal from the Delhi zoo has been rescued safely after four of them escaped through their holding enclosure on Saturday, zoo officials said on Monday. One jackal was rescued on Sunday too, and officials said search for two more jackals is underway.

(Representative image) In August, a dozen barking deer wandered out when fencing was removed during drain cleaning, and officials never confirmed whether all were recovered. (HT Archive)

“Two jackals are back in the holding area. An extensive search throughout staff and CCTV surveillance is underway,” Delhi Zoo director Sanjeet Kumar said, adding that trap cages and special squads have been deployed to spot the remaining jackals which may be outside the holding area.

HT on November 23 reported at least four jackals had escaped the holding enclosure in Delhi Zoo on Saturday – between 10am and 11am, due to a supposed opening in the rear of the enclosure. They had escaped into the “off-display” area, in a forested patch – part of the zoo premises but away from the visitors’ area. The zoo had on Sunday issued an official statement confirming the incident.

“The joint director, NZP, has been asked to enquire into the matter and submit a report,” a statement by the zoo had said.

HT had on November 24 also flagged how at least a dozen barking deer had escaped their enclosures in a similar manner in early August, when the drainage area in Beat No 15 was being cleaned and fencing had briefly been removed.

Officials said visitors reported deer sightings “for several days” before most were captured, though officials said it remained unclear if all of them returned.