To attract more visitors to the zoo, the Indira Gandhi Zoological Park (IGZP) in Visakhapatnam is making plans to become the first zoo in India to initiate a 'Digital India' drive.
The zoo launched a WiFi system and also plans to upgrade its website soon.
The zoo will soon launch various mobile applications like e-health, e-education along with facilities like a digital knowledge centre and e-booking.
Through e-hospital facility, animals will be provided healthcare in the form of diagnostic reports, enquiry on various methods of treatment and exchange of information and solutions online. The information related to animals would be uploaded online with a unique identity code.
The e-education section will provide information regarding the history of the zoo, list of animal species housed there, animal husbandry, habitat, flora and fauna, zoo events, botanical species, ecology, relevance of wildlife conservation and research etc.
This facility can be used by schools for learning purposes.
For booking tickets online and to get information on immediate plans of animal exchange programmes, recent and new arrivals to the zoo, visitor amenities, guides and information on touring executives and their assistance, the zoo will provide the e-booking app.
A 'Digi locker' system will give secure access for the employees to access government issued documents.
"Further, to enhance the security and surveillance network service, cameras are being launched. It will facilitate close monitoring of animals and collaboration between all security facets for action during emergencies. There are also card readers, alarm systems and temperature controls. Motion sensors can be employed to create electric fences, which can trigger an alert when visitors step over the boundaries into an exhibit," zoo curator B Vijaya Kumar told Times of India.