Ever since it was inaugurated last year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the world's tallest statue—Statue of Unity—in Kevadia of Gujarat has been in the news and has been attracting thousands of tourists.
However, now, the statue is in the news for all the wrong reasons.
Even as the Gujarat government has been developing the nearby areas of the statue as a tourist destination, there have been reports of death of a giraffe and two impalas in the vicinity.
The animals were among the ones brought from different parts of India and the world over for the Jungle Safari Park being set up near the Statue of Unity.
Ram Ratan Nala, director of the Jungle Safari Park, has reportedly said the giraffe died on Tuesday due to pre-acute mortality syndrome, which happens due to season change. It is also believed that the animal could not bear the travel as it was brought from South Africa 20 days ago.
Impalas died a day after they were brought.
The Park is expected to have 170 species of fauna.
Rajiv Gupta, additional chief secretary (forest and environment), was unavailable for comments despite repeated attempts.
As part of developing tourism, a tent city is already in place and so is a butterfly park and river rafting among other amenities.
The statue has attracted 28 lakh visitors from India and abroad ever since it was inaugurated on October 31, 2018.
