International Red Panda Day is celebrated every year on the third Saturday of September to support Red Panda conservation. It is a day to celebrate the Himalayan Mountains’ elusive Firefox and generate much-needed awareness about the species. Taking a step forward in the conservation efforts, SBI Foundation and WWF India entered into a partnership to generate fine-scale information on the species at a transboundary level and engage with communities in safeguarding key habitats of the Red Panda in the Khangchendzonga landscape of Sikkim and West Bengal.
An event was organised at the Himalayan Zoological Park in Gangtok to celebrate International Red Panda Day. This Zoological Park is the first-of-its-kind, where animals are kept in their natural habitat. The event was hosted to raise awareness about the endangered species among young visitors. The programme included presentations and talks on Red Panda conservation, an inter-school quiz competition, and culminated with zoo visits.
Speaking at the event, Shri. Karma Loday Bhutia, Hon’ble State Minister of Forest, Environment & Wildlife, Sikkim, shared, “Red pandas are a special animal for the state, and the WWF India and SBI Foundation partnership would contribute meaningfully towards the conservation effort of the State Government. He also requested WWF for their technical contribution towards a species recovery program for the future.”
