Lucknow: The apex court on Wednesday gave its permission for coming up with the country’s first night safari at Lucknow’s Kukrail Reserve Forest. According to reports, it has asked the state to comply with all conditions imposed by various statutory authorities before commencement of the work.
The bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant passed the order, reported HT. The order was passed while hearing an application moved by the Uttar Pradesh government after obtaining the opinion of the expert body, Central Empowered Committee (CEC).
The UP government has got the nod from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) and the ministry of environment forests and climate change (MoEFCC). It was awaiting the court’s approval since 2024. According to a previous top court order, no final approval shall be granted for establishment of any zoo or safari in the country without prior permission of the SC.
The UP government had obtained approval from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) and the ministry of environment forests and climate change (MoEFCC) and was awaiting the court’s nod since an order of February 19, 2024 passed by the top court mandates that no final approval shall be granted for establishment of any zoo or safari without prior permission of the court.
The bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, said, “The state has agreed to abide by all conditions recommended by the CEC. In view of the fact that the CZA and MoEFCC have granted approval for establishment of night safari, we allow the present application.”
The court, as per the report, has even allowed any public-spirited person to give suggestions to the CEC.
With this approval, India is set to get its first night safari. There are night safaris in Singapore, China, Thailand and Indonesia.
