Alarm bells over 3 animal deaths in a week at Bengal Safari Park
Times of India | 24 July 2026
Siliguri: Three wild animals died at Bengal Safari Park within a week, setting off alarm within the forest dept and prompting the West Bengal govt to order a comprehensive investigation. As questions mounted over the back-to-back deaths, allegations of long-standing financial irregularities at the park also surfaced, leading the forest dept to initiate parallel probes into both the wildlife fatalities and the park’s financial administration.
The latest deaths include a lion cub, a spectacled langur and a blackbuck. The Asiatic lion is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, the blackbuck is listed under Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, and the sambar deer is protected under Schedule III of the Act. The spectacled langur is also a protected primate under India’s wildlife protection framework. Earlier this year, Bengal Safari had also lost its only rhinoceros, Bheem, adding to growing concerns over the management and care of animals at the park.
According to park authorities, the lion cub had reportedly been suffering from health complications for nearly 16 months, while the spectacled langur, which was brought from Sepahijala Zoological Park in Tripura last year, died due to medical complications. The consecutive deaths, coming soon after Bengal Safari celebrated Aranya Week with much fanfare, have raised fresh questions over the effectiveness of the park’s veterinary care, animal monitoring and healthcare infrastructure.
“Post-mortems of the deceased animals have already been conducted. The forest dept has also constituted a special medical team to monitor the quality of animal feed, conduct regular health examinations and strengthen round-the-clock surveillance of the animals,” said park officials.
The controversy has been compounded by allegations of serious financial irregularities within the park.
According to sources inside Bengal Safari, expenditure records under several financial heads have allegedly failed to reconcile for years, raising concerns over administrative lapses and financial mismanagement. The alleged discrepancies have prompted questions over how irregularities could have remained unnoticed for such a long period at one of North Bengal’s premier wildlife conservation facilities.
Taking a stern view of the situation, forest minister Manoj Oraon said that the govt would investigate both the financial irregularities and the recent animal deaths.
“No negligence in wildlife maintenance or park administration will be tolerated. If anyone is found guilty, strict legal action will be taken,” Oraon said.
The minister said that preliminary scrutiny had already revealed discrepancies in the park’s financial records. “We have already found that several financial records do not tally. A departmental inquiry is being initiated to examine these irregularities,” he said.
Announcing an independent probe into the animal deaths, the minister added, “Along with the departmental inquiry, an external and independent agency will be entrusted with investigating the recent animal deaths so that an impartial report can establish the facts.”
Meanwhile, the forest dept is also moving ahead with plans to relocate five Royal Bengal Tigers from Bengal Safari Park to the upcoming Jhargram Safari Park in the near future.