New Delhi, Jan 20 (PTI) At least 11 fully-grown sandalwood trees have been stolen from the Delhi zoo premises, indicating a major loophole in security arrangements at the facility, official sources said on Friday.

Zoo Director Akansha Mahajan did not respond to requests for a comment.

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The incident comes around two months after feral dogs jumped into the zoo's compound and mauled three deer, including two endangered ones, to death.

A source in the zoo said around eight unidentified armed men entered the zoo premises by cutting the barbed wire fencing atop the boundary wall with Sunder Nursery in the early hours Thursday.

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"The men cut down fully-grown trees near the director's residence and eight trees in a portion of Azimganj Sarai that falls in the forests of the Delhi zoo," the source said.

The trees were planted around 30-35 years ago. Only four to five of them are left now.

Another official said the incident has been caught on CCTV cameras and a complaint has been filed at the Nizamuddin Police Station.

He said more than 50 private security guards man the zoo premises during daytime and around 10 are deployed at night. PTI GVS

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)