Newborn pandas, pheasants bring cheer amid gloom

Two red pandas were born in captivity along with two pheasants in the Darjeeling zoo amidst the ongoing indefinite bandh. "The two red pandas were born at the Breeding Centre at Tobgay Danra in Darjeeling while the pheasants hatched in a breeding centre at Dowhill in Kurseong. The cubs and birds are in good health," stated Pyar Chand, director, Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park (Pnhzp), also known as the Darjeeling Zoo. It is the coordinating zoo for the red panda breeding programme in India. The project was initiated in 1990. Pnhzp is also the pioneer zoo to have initiated the captive breeding programme of snow leopards. The zoo houses 15 red pandas and 11 snow leopards at present. The Pnhzp, founded in 1958, specialises in the captive breeding of endangered Himalayan species including snow leopard, red panda, tibetan wolf, blue sheep, Himalayan Tahr and crimson-horned pheasant.