BENGALURU: Brought for illegal slaughtering during Bakrid, 18 camels were rescued from the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border in Hosur were sent back to their original habitat in Rajasthan. Despite the ban order on camel slaughter, transporting the animals continues unabated, animal activists said. A mafia brought the animals crossing by crossing different check posts.
Recently, a Madras High Court judges Justices CJ Munishwar Nath Bhandari and M Mala directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure that cows, camels and other animals are not transported or slaughtered against the provision of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
Based on the court order and armed with inputs and from activists, Animal Husbandry commissioner A Gnanasekaran, the Tamil Nadu government has sent a letter to the Superintendent of Police Krishnagiri District stating that hundreds of camels have entered Karnataka, and over two dozen are stocked in Hosur close to Bengaluru and asked them to check.
“Camels are banned from slaughtering and also from transport outside of their habitats. The mafia operating in the area has entered Maharashtra and then slipped into Belagavi. From there, the animals were brought to Tumakuru and reached Attibele on the outskirts of Bengaluru. It was then brought to Hosur to avoid getting caught and was supposed to be brought back to Bengaluru on Bakrid for slaughtering. The officials at every check post have failed to crack down on illegal animal transport .
"The animals were rescued 10 days ago and after a few days of sheltering, they were transported back to their original habitat,” Sunil Dugar from Prani Daya Sangha said.
Dugar also stated when they informed some senior officials in Tamil Nadu, they said the animals may been brought for joy rides or for grazing.
“The police had to be informed that transportation of such animals is a crime,” stressed Dugar, and added that two of the people who were operating this illegal network escaped and a case has been filed in Tamil Nadu.