India gifts five peacocks, including rare white bird, to UN Geneva

Unitednations,UPDATED: Aug 10, 2026 10:06 IST

India has donated five Indian peacocks, including a rare white-feathered one, to the United Nations Office at Geneva, reviving a decades-old tradition at the UN's European headquarters. The birds were formally handed over at a special ceremony on Friday by India's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Arindam Bagchi, to UNOG Director-General Tatiana Valovaya.

The donation marks the second time India has presented peacocks to UNOG. The five young birds include four blue peafowl and one white-feathered male, reflecting the blue and white colours associated with the United Nations, while also highlighting India's natural heritage and its commitment to multilateralism.

In 1981, then prime minister Indira Gandhi had sent a breeding pair from the Delhi Zoo to UNOG. In a statement, the Indian mission said, "The Indian Peacock, a symbol of grace, beauty and resilience, represents India's enduring commitment to the conservation of biodiversity and environmental stewardship." It added that the donation reflects the country's natural heritage and cultural ethos, and underscores India's longstanding partnership with the UN as well as its commitment to multilateralism and international cooperation.

Valovaya expressed appreciation to the Indian government for the gesture, according to a statement issued by the Permanent Mission of India in Geneva. The care of the birds will be overseen by Geneva Bioparc zoo along with UN staff. "It's really a dream habitat for them," said Tobias Blaha, Director of Geneva Bioparc zoo. The peacocks will first stay in an enclosed habitat for around three months before being allowed to roam freely in Ariana Park.

The 46-hectare Ariana Park, where the UN's European headquarters is located, is one of the biggest and most prestigious parks in Geneva. The City of Geneva had made the park available first to the League of Nations and later to the United Nations for its offices, for as long as the UN exists. Peacocks have been part of Ariana Park for more than a century, with the tradition going back to Swiss archaeologist and art collector Gustave Revilliod, who bequeathed the estate where the UN complex now stands to the city of Geneva in 1890. Most of the birds seen there today were donated to UNOG in 1997 by a zoo in Japan, and India's latest donation now adds to that long-standing tradition.

With PTI Inputs

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