Bhubaneswar: To mark the end of Wildlife Week, the bullet toy train service in Nandankanan Zoological Park, on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar, will be inaugurated on Friday (October 8).
Forest Minister Bikram Keshari Arukh also will lay the foundation stone of an aerial ropeway on the same day.
Deputy director of the zoo Dr Sanjit Kumar said a 1.2-km railway track and a station has been constructed with financial assistance from Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL).
Besides, a bullet toy train engine and four bogies have been procured from Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) at the cost of Rs 82 lakh.
Kumar further said the bullet toy train will make 12 trips with about 700 passengers every day. “Each trip will have 72 passengers, including two divyangs. The service will be available from 9 am to 5 pm,” he said.
Since the new bullet toy train engine will run on electricity, there will be no pollution, he added.
On the ropeway, he said that it will be constructed in PPP mode with mono-cable pulsated over 625 metres with two towers at an estimated cost of Rs 13 crore
The main station will be between the toy train station and the boat ghat at Kanjia Lake and the second near the Botanical Garden. This will facilitate the movement of visitors between the zoo and the Botanical Garden. There will be 12 cabins and each of these can accommodate three persons. The price of the ticket has been fixed at Rs 95 plus GST.
“The park signed an agreement with Kolkata-based Damodar Ropeway Infra Ltd on October 5 for the project, which will be completed in 18 months,” Kumar added.
Notably, the ropeway service was stopped in February 2011, while the toy train joyride was halted in 2014.
