Nandankanan Loses 21-Year-Old Lion 'Pichhan’

Bhubaneswar: An old age lion named 'Pichhan' passed away today at the Nandankana Zoological Park in the outskirts of the capital city. Zoo authorities said the big cat died of old age complicacies.

Pichhan was brought from Sakkarbaug Zoo in Gujarat on March 23, 2013 to renew the declining population of the lions at the city-based zoo. The 21-year-old big cat was undergoing treatment since last several days.

Following its death, the number of lions in the Nandankanan Zoo has further dropped to 9 with 4 male and 5 female lions.

The loss of Pichhan comes just few weeks after back to back deaths of two anacondas brought from Madras Crocodile Bank Trust. Earlier in September, death of a few elephants in quick succession due to probable outbreak of herpes virus in the zoo had triggered concerns among wildlife lovers in the State.