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On 12 August 2026 the Central Zoo Authority approved Gujarat's proposal for a Desert Zoological Park and Night Safari at Juna Deesa in Banaskantha district, planned as Asia's first desert-themed drive-through night safari.
The project will come up on about 103 hectares of contiguous government land at an estimated cost of Rs 542.14 crore, to be developed by the Gujarat Forest Department.
It is designed to house roughly 2,700 animals and birds from about 83 species, with a separate day zoo and five dedicated night safari enclosures for viewing nocturnal animals after sunset.
The planned collection mixes arid-zone Indian species such as chinkara, blackbuck and Indian wild ass with African fauna including cheetah, giraffe and zebra, and Australian species such as kangaroo and emu.
Rainwater harvesting, solar power, sewage treatment and solid waste management are built into the design, and the park is to double as a centre for conservation breeding, rescue, rehabilitation and environmental education.
Statutory body that recognises, regulates and sets standards for zoos in India; no zoo may operate without its recognition
Implementing agency for the Desert Zoological Park and Night Safari at Juna Deesa
Chapter IVA (Sections 38A to 38J) was inserted into the Act to create the Central Zoo Authority, which was established in 1992. Section 38A is the provision under which the CZA itself exists.
Every zoo in India needs CZA recognition to operate, and the CZA today oversees roughly 150 recognised zoos and rescue centres. That is why a state government project of this kind cannot proceed on state approval alone.
A night safari is a zoo format built around nocturnal animals - species that are active after dark and are therefore asleep and invisible during ordinary zoo hours. Visitors move through large naturalistic enclosures, usually in a vehicle, under low-intensity lighting tuned so that humans can see but the animals do not perceive it as daylight. The 'drive-through' element means animals are held in wide enclosures that the visitor route passes through, rather than the visitor walking past cages. At Juna Deesa the format is combined with a desert theme, meaning the habitat design, landscaping and species selection are drawn from arid ecosystems.
Simple Analogy: An ordinary zoo shows you animals during your waking hours; a night safari rearranges the visit around the animals' waking hours instead.
Banaskantha lies in north Gujarat and shares a border with Rajasthan; the site at Juna Deesa was chosen for its contiguous land, natural sand dunes and proximity to the Banas River, along with road and rail connectivity. The arid and semi-arid belt it sits in is the natural home of the chinkara, blackbuck and Indian wild ass that the park plans to display.
GS Paper 3 > Conservation, Environment - statutory environmental bodies and captive conservation
General Awareness > Current Affairs, Indian Geography and Wildlife
General Awareness > National and State Current Affairs
"Project Tiger" was launched in India in which year?
Answer: 1973
Statutory body established in 1992 under Section 38A of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, headquartered in New Delhi, which recognises and regulates zoos in India.
Planned captive breeding of a threatened species with the aim of maintaining a genetically viable population and, where possible, releasing animals back into the wild.
The Indian gazelle, an antelope of arid and semi-arid India, found across Gujarat and Rajasthan.
The Indian wild ass of the Little Rann of Kachchh in Gujarat, the only population of this subspecies in the world.