Bhubaneswar: Nandankanan Zoological Park (NZP) in the Odisha capital here will soon get a pair of cheetahs and a few white lions from abroad.

A pair of cheetahs and a few exotic white lions will be brought to Nandankanan from a zoo in Dubai under an animal exchange programme in January next year, said Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (wildlife) Susanta Nanda today.

This apart, some new species of birds will be brought to Nandankanan from abroad under the programme, he added.

Moreover, the authorities of NZP have planned to bring a few giraffes from Alipore Zoological Garden in West Bengal under another animal exchange programme, revealed the PCCF.

The NZP will bring a male and a female cheetah in exchange for five Manipur brow-antlered deer, sources said.

Similarly, Nandankanan will get a few African white lions in exchange for five blackbucks with Dubai Safari Park in UAE, sources added.