LAHORE: The Lahore Zoo Safari has prepared many new enclosures for new animals but there are no new animals except for those brought to the safari under the exchange programme, sources in the Punjab Wildlife Department told Dawn.

They said Rs40 million were to be allocated for the zoosafari for the purchase of new animals in the 2015-16 budget but the funds had either lapse d or been surrendered.

Some days ago, the zoo safari brought three male barking deer and two male zebras from the Marghazar Zoo, Islamabad in exchange of a pair of African lions.

The new enclosures at the zoo safari were to have ostriches, emus, zebras, snake house, crocodile house, mon-key house and small cats, antelopes along with elephants andleopards.

All these animals and some other had to be bought against Rs40m but the management did not utilise the funds.

However, Punjab Wildlife Department Director General Khalid Ayaz denied that the reports. He said the process to buy new animals was going on and new animals would be brought to the safari soon.