Sanctuary lions in decline

A reduction in the number of lions at a sanctuary in India's northern Himachal Pradesh is disappointing tourists.

The sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh has hardly any lions left and has said a breeding programme is impossible.

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Enthusiastic day trippers head towards the Renuka Lion Sanctuary in Sirmour Himachal Pradesh.

There's only one problem.

The Renuka has hardly any lions left - and these animals lovers are in for a disappointment.

Thousands of visitors from all over India flock here expecting a day of learning more about lions and seeing them in wild surroundings.

But instead the sanctuary has just one caged enclosure with 7 lions inside.

Wildlife officials say they cannot breed them because they are all from the same family.

SOUNDBITE: Nagesh, a Divisional Forest Officer, the Wildlife Wing of the Himachal Government, saying: (Hindi),

"The problem here is that all lions are from the same lineage and we cannot take a chance to further breed them. In order to increase the population we need to have a pair from outside either a male or a female or both. But unfortunately in India the stud lions are not maintained properly and some of them are rescued animals from the circus and other places. So unfortunately the stock is not very pure."

Many tourists have been outraged by the lack of lions in a lion sanctuary.

But the wild life department in the Himachal Pradesh government said that it has no plans to close it down.