The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : PeTA flays manner of transporting cattle

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 26, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

PeTA flays manner of transporting cattle

Staff Reporter

CHENNAI: The illegal transportation of cattle from Tamil Nadu to Kerala goes on unabated with animals being treated cruelly by handlers, N.G. Jayasimha, representative from People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA), said here on Tuesday.

Speaking to journalists at a press conference, Mr. Jayasimha said that the PeTA took up a countrywide investigation on the functioning of slaughterhouses as well as the transportation of cattle to abattoirs.

Mr. Jayasimha said their organisation had approached the then Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, who assured that steps would be taken to ensure that the animals would be treated properly.

But, little progress had been achieved. Even today slaughterhouses were functioning without veterinary officials. In a majority of the abattoirs, children handled the animals that arrived there.

Added to that was the poor hygienic conditions that prevailed at the slaughterhouses, he said.

The problems begin with the transportation of cattle. In most cases, the cattle were stacked one on top of each other. In some cases, their legs were broken and they were forced to sit while more cattle was loaded on them.

In order to create awareness about handling cattle in a humane manner, the PeTA has conducted three-day training programmes for the workers in the cattle market.

He also added that the provisions in the Prevention of Cruelties to Animals Act needed to be updated.

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