The Delhi High Court today directed Delhi Jal Board (DJB), MCD and the city zoo authority to work in co-ordination for the safety of animals in the zoo here.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice A K Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw directed the concerned engineers from DJB, MCD and the Delhi zoo director to convene a meeting to repair a leaking drain pipe from which several black bucks in the zoo consumed contaminated water and died last year.

The bench also sought a report from the authorities by January 18.

The order came on a plea by the zoo authority alleging the repair work of drain pipe, assigned to MCD, had not been completed satisfactorily despite the court's order.

According to the zoo authority, MCD claimed that the repair work is over but the sewer water from the nearby residential area comes into the drain, which is dangerous for the animals.

The high court had earlier taken suo moto cognisance of a media report that lack of co-ordination between agencies had resulted in the failure to repair a drain pipe from which several black bucks in the zoo consumed contaminated water and died.