BENGALURU: The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) will hold a meeting with Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and other officials in the city once more to discuss if the directions given by the board in their earlier meeting, held on August 10, had been implemented. The board had given directions to reconstitute the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Bengaluru, and also frame an action of plan for an Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme in the city. Convener Dr SK Mittal says that the AWBI will file a contempt petition against the state government if no action is taken, as the Supreme Court had directed setting up of the board in each state and district about 10 years ago.
But animal rights activists claim that there has not been a functional committee or board to monitor cruelty against animals in the city. CXO search consultant Priya Chetty-Rajagopal says that she’s been writing to the BBMP and AWBI asking about the status of the board in Bengaluru. “They reply saying there’s a board in the city, but later, they stopped responding altogether,” she says. Sunil Duggar, spokesperson of Akhila Karnataka Prani Daya Sangha, also says there’s been no SPCA operating in the city. “If there is a board, who are the committee members? What is the framework of the board, and what are its roles and responsibilities?” he questions.
Dr Mittal agrees that the State Animal Welfare Board and district SPCA have been practically defunct. “Only when the chairman is appointed, they have a meeting to garland the member. After that meetings never happen. The officials have been given directions to strengthen the board. We have asked to fund animal shelters, keep a check on illegal transportation and slaughtering of animals and take care of ABC programmes. We are pursuing the matter with the state government,” he says. Another meeting will be held soon, he adds, to see the progress of the implementation of these directives. “If no action is being taken, the AWBI will file a contempt petition, as the Karnataka HC had also given directions to take action against illegal transport and slaughtering of animals,” he says.
When City Express contacted the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, Dr Maheshwar Gowda, additional director, says the State Animal Welfare Board has always been there and the board is now being reformed with the change in government. “Now, as the government has changed, we have filed nominations for committee members to the government. It will be a 15-member committee. The members will include two MLAs, a zilla panchayat president, five from gau shalas and two from SPCAs,” he adds.
One of the other aspects discussed in the August 10 meeting was the status of ABC programmes in the city. Harini Raghavan, CXO search consultant, says the AWBI has to make efforts to activate the State Animal Welfare Board and prioritise dog (both pet and stray) welfare. “The focus on the quality and efficiency of the ABC programme is missing. BBMP focusses on dog complaints and pick-ups. It takes up over 50 per cent of precious time, which could be used for ABC surgeries. Dogs get unnecessarily displaced because of non-genuine complaints by influential citizens,” she says.
Talking about citizens stepping up to do their bit with regard to ABC, Priya says that Dr G Anand, joint director, Animal Husbandry Department, BBMP, doesn’t allow citizens to get involved and bring strays to the centre. Vinay Moray, from Sarvodaya Sevabhavi Samstha, one of the centres recognised by the animal husbandry department for the ABC programme, says citizens should be allowed to bring a dog to the centre for ABC, as they also take care of the animal post the procedure.
But Dr Anand says the rules do not state that citizens can also be involved in the programme. When asked what action is being taken by the BBMP, he says, “We have formed an ABC Monitoring Committee with Vijay Shankar, special commissioner, as it’s chairman. We have submitted the report to the government. We are taking action.” But when CE tried contacting Vijay Shankar, an official said that he was transferred about four months ago.
Petition to PM
CJ Memorial Trust Bangalore has started a petition addressing Dr Harsha Vardhan, minister, Environment, Forests & Climate Change; SP Gupta, chairman of Animal Welfare Board; Maneka Gandhi, minster of Women and Child Welfare and Narendra Modi, seeking setting up of the long overdue State Animal Welfare Board and SPCA in all Indian states and districts.