The annual economic value of ecosystem services provided by the Delhi zoo works out to be ₹426 crore, an assessment by the The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and commissioned by the Central Zoo Authority has found. These ‘ecosystem services’ constitute heads such as biodiversity conservation, employment generation, education and research, carbon sequestration and recreational and cultural contributions. When one-time ecosystem services are considered, such as carbon storage, the surrogate value of land and land value of Delhi zoo, their contribution climbs to nearly ₹55,209 crore, says the report released by Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar.