Anant Ambani aims to establish global wildlife testing hub

Reliance Industries Director Anant Ambani, an animal lover, has taken up an ambitious project of opening the world's largest zoo—an animal rescue and rehabilitation centre. Speaking to CNBC-Awaaz's Anuj Singhal, Anant Ambani shared more about his love for animals and his vision for this dream project.

Ambani talked about his family's love for animals, citing his parents, Mukesh and Nita Ambani, as his primary inspiration for the new initiative.

"Think about wildlife labs. There are over 150 zoos in the country. There are a lot of departments overseeing forest areas. There are many for-profit zoos. They all need labs. While we are not-for-profit, we have to make some money. In the future, we want to build a Centre of Excellence in Wildlife where samples from all over the world come for testing. Like humans who contracted COVID-19, animals also suffer from a lot of infections. These infections can affect humans too," he said.

He said the rescue center houses over 200 elephants, while the zoo has more than 100 species of animals and a dedicated team of 3,000 people to manage it. He spends an hour or two with the animals each day.

He believes that planting trees and growing the jungle is in the service of animals.

“We don’t expect anything in return,” he said.