Bhubaneswar: Nandankanan Zoological Park (NZP) in the city here witnessed all-time highest footfall in the current financial year of 2022-23.

As many as 34 lakh people have visited the zoo till February-end of this fiscal, sources said.

“It is expected that the footfall to Nandankanan may cross 37 lakh by the end of 2022-23 financial year,” said an official.

According to him, around 8 lakh people have visited the zoo in January and February months of the current financial year.

The zoo had recorded the footfall of 32 lakh in 2017-18 financial year while the number was 31 lakh in 2018-19, 26 lakh in 2019-20, 8 lakh in 2020-21 and 14 lakh in 2021-22 fiscal, sources said.

“The footfall to NZP fell sharply during 2020-21 and 2021-22 fiscals due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” said the official.

Notably, the NZP had recorded the all-time highest footfall on the Christmas Day of 2022.

As many as 46,148 people visited the zoo on the Christmas Day, which coincided with the last Sunday of 2022.

NZP sources said altogether 20,013 people visited the zoo on Christmas Day in 2021 while the number was only 6,769 in 2020, 29,701 in 2019, 34, 914 in 2018 and 23,628 in 2017.

A total of 40,078 people had visited NZP on Christmas Day in 2016, they added.