Contractor paid to spay and neuter dogs instead dumped them on highway to die
Fizzah Shah, Vice President of IDA India, has dedicated her life to helping the hungry, stray dogs who roam the streets of Mumbai. Having worked so closely with animals for so long, Shah can often sense when animals nearby need help -- even under circumstances when it may be the least expected.
This happened recently on the evening of Saturday, September 1st as Shah was moving slowly along a highway through a traffic jam. She noticed a van parked on the opposite side of the road, and three men throwing living dogs out of the van and onto the highway. Alarmed and knowing that something was seriously amiss, Shah grabbed her camera, jumped out of her car, and ran over to the van, where she confronted the men.
When Shah demanded the men explain what they were doing, they told her they worked for a nearby sterilization center and were releasing the dogs after their operations. Sterilizing and then bringing stray dogs back to where they were found is common practice in India, but releasing them in such a dangerous place is not. Shah knew this, and took the keys from the van's ignition so the culprits could not drive away before being questioned by police.
Soon, traffic started moving again, and some of the 20 dogs were trying to cross the highway -- right in the path of oncoming vehicles. Tragically, Shah's worst fear came true: two innocent dogs were run over by a speeding truck as she watched helplessly from the roadside. Struggling through the shock and overwhelming grief of witnessing such horror, Shah managed to focus on the other dogs, who were now barking in terror. Fortunately, she always has dog biscuits in her pocket from working with animals all day, so she threw the treats on the ground and immediately three female dogs came forward to eat them. They got close enough for Shah to pet them, and she picked them up to check whether they were spayed and saw that they were not.
"The puzzle pieces now fell into place," said Shah. "The whole swindle was that the men work for a company that has a contract with a municipal stray dog sterilization center. They pick up intact dogs, mark in their log book that they have sterilized them, and then claim the money -- 800 rupees (US $20) per dog. Meanwhile, they do not perform the operations, but merely throw these dogs onto highways where they either get run over by vehicles, or die from starvation and dehydration."
Shah brought the three men into the police station, where they were arrested under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. Under questioning, the offenders insisted that they were innocent because they were merely following the orders of their superior, Mr. Vivek Patil, who holds a contract with the Vasai municipal council that pays him to spay and neuter dogs. Patil has denied he instructed his employees to dump the dogs on the road.
After spending the night in lockup, the three men were released on bail in the morning, but will be called into court to face charges. Even if they are convicted, they are not being charged with killing the dogs, so their sentencing will not be very harsh, and Patil himself has so far not been charged with any criminal offense. The dogs who survived the incident were returned to the stray dog sterilization center, and the municipal council has started an investigation of the matter.
1) Please write the Navghar Vasai Nagar Palika and urge them cancel Vivek Patil's contract with ABC. Since Mr. Patil works as an executive in a government department, he took the contract in the name of his wife, who has no experience with animals. Note that postage for international letters is 90 cents.
Chief Executive Officer
Navghar Vasai Nagar Palika
Opp. ST Stand, Vasai Road
Vasai (W), Thana District
Maharastra
India
2) The Animal Welfare Board of India controls all the ABC centers in the country, so they have the authority to disqualify any non-governmental organization from participating in the sterilization program. Please write a letter to the Animal Welfare Board urging them to cancel Vivek Patil's registration and disqualify him from contracting to provide sterilization services.
General Kharab
Secretary and Chairman
Animal Welfare Board of India (AW
Fort St. George, Secretriat
Chennai 600 009
India
'Stray' cases*
The capital appears to be losing its patience with "stray" visitors.
The civic body last week "rounded up" not criminals but stray cattle
loitering around in the city.
In all, 150 such "unwanted guests" were caught over two days while they were
having a "leisurely stroll" on some of the busiest thoroughfares. The MCD's
cattle-catching teams, accompanied by police, picked up the strays from
Shahdara, Najafgarh, Civil Lines and Karol Bagh.
Not Every Dog Has Its Day - Street dogs In India
http://nazaronline.net/politics_society/jul08/not_every_dog_111.html
By Nimisha Mittal On the streets, in the fields, on the sidewalks, under public stairwells, or sprawled across and inside historical monuments. They try to stay at a safe distance from human habitation, far enough to escape any sudden aggressive moves or spurts of cruelty, yet close enough to scavenge for leftover tidbits of food. And thus, they thrive.
Photo: Dey
Street dogs in India - the unlucky cousins of the 'pet dogs' Street dogs in India are just as common as bicycles, pedestrians, or cows. City dogs can usually be seen weaving in and out of crowds of people milling about the streets, looking either for food or shelter. These dogs are skin and bones, sometimes injured or diseased, and have the ragged look of hardship and suffering. They're the unlucky cousins of the ‘
et dogs'; they ran out of luck centuries ago, and were condemned
to live among humans, sans masters or affection.
Still,
they seem to be able to carry on. They live on scraps of garbage and
human kindness- that is, until some dog in some city gets rabies and is
unfortunate enough to bite a human. That is when society collapses on
itself, and finds a new species to blame it all on.
I
grew up in a neighborhood in India that had its fair share of ecology –
there were cows, dogs, pigs, monkeys, and even peacocks. A friend and I
even gave the dogs names, some of whom had been adopted by servant
families. Following some complaints of the increase in the number of
dogs in the area, there was a massive movement in our campus area
towards the removal of the said ‘menace'. A few days later, when I came
back from school, I saw a street dog lying dead in the drain outside
our house. My own dog lamented over him for days, refusing to eat.
That
was the first time I became painfully aware of the human mentality of
wiping out species that were in our way and the seemingly common
indiscriminate killing of innocent animals as a way of life. I found
out later that poisoning the dogs in my neighborhood had been the
cheapest solution – having professional dog-catchers come in would have
cost the authorities of the district Rs.500 per dog (about $12).
And
the harsh truth is that this was not an isolated incident. Thousands of
dogs are killed in India on a regular basis – especially if there are
reports of attacks of dogs on humans. Ironically, the ‘Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals Act' of 1960 is completely ignored. When two
children were killed by stray dog bites in early 2007, there was a
public outcry, which led to city officials ordering all the stray dogs
to be rounded up.1 Many of these dogs were killed eventually.
I
understand that human rabies is a critical problem, and needs to be
addressed. But killing off dogs is not the solution. Some would call
the culling ‘inhuman', a laughable term considering that such an
atrocity is committed by humans alone and none other in the entire
animal kingdom. Humans are usually humane enough to let other humans
live, but as the most powerful species on the planet, we should have a
responsibility towards all other animals.
But not all
dogs are condemned, thanks to several animal friendly groups that are
emerging all over the country. ‘Help in Suffering' is one such
organization, founded in 1994 in Rajasthan, a state in Western India.
The group has, over ten years, sterilized and vaccinated over 25,000
street dogs, and brought down human rabies incidents by almost 30%.
Individuals such as Lila Parulekar from Pune, prove that one person
alone can make a difference. Her house is now a shelter for homeless
animals, which goes by the name of ‘Jeev Raksha' (Protection of
Animals). Dogs, and virtually all animals are fed and looked after by
volunteers and a qualified veterinarian.
Uma Mahadevan
Dasgupta, writer for 'The Hindu', a prominent newspaper in India, says
that ‘humankind will take a long time, it seems, to understand that we
have no right to enslave the rest of nature: we must share the planet.2
I couldn't have said it better. I don't see the point of looking for
more species of life on this planet, or life on other planets, when the
beautiful life we see around us isn't cherished or respected.
Footnotes: 1http://ananimalfriendlylife.com/2007/03/guest-post-bangalores-war-against.html 2http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mag/2004/02/22/stories/2004022200340400.htm
June
- 2 hours
ago
- timesofindia.indiatimes.com
morning i.e. 2 a.m. Yoronso, a 30 year old notorious Naga man pursuing
his Ph.D form JNU's School Of Social Science, (Centre for Political
Studies) and occupant of Room # 248 Kaveri Hostel invited over two of
his friends who spotted Kali sitting near the staircase and
instantaneously developed a longing to consume her flesh. To hatch
their heinous scheme they lured Kali with a Parle G biscuit to
Yoronso's room (Room # 248) and once inside they bolted the room from
within, Yoronso then fed Kali some rice that he had gotten from the
hostel mess downstairs and once Kali was done having it, he wrapped
around Kali's snout two torn "Duppattas". Kali unsuspecting of the
crimes that were to take place was busy thanking Yoronso and his
friends for that Parle G biscuit and rice dish they let her have but
suddenly Yoronso began to bludgeon her with a cricket bat and soon his
friends joined in with a curtain rods.
"This battering prolonged for almost an hour and when Kali was
sufficiently dazed owing to the relentless beating then Yoronso
plunged his knife into her and began to sever her while she was still
alive, kicking and writhing in agonizing pain and continuing to
breathe in ragged gasps as she kept blinking slowly.
"Next 20 minutes Yoronso mercilessly dismembered her limb after limb
while she still kept alive and mortifyingly watched the horrors and
butchery being performed on her. Yoronso's friend then brought a brick
and began to smash Kali's skull with that and resultantly Kali
succumbed.
"The commotion of this sordid crime was enough to shatter the peace of
the hostel sending students and wardens scurrying towards the scene of
crime. Yoronso and his accomplices were caught red-handed and the
bystanders were nauseated to witness the degree of cruelty involved.
Some of the students were so overwhelmed to see that enormous pool of
blood and Kali's maimed body that they called the Police but the
Hostel Wardens were quick to dissuade them and staged another cover up
by destroying the evidence i.e. Kali's corpse, murder weapons etc. The
Police did arrive but as expected conducted their hallmark slipshod
investigations and made no attempt to nab the culprits or secure the
prima facie evidence
"With the apparent laxity of Police and Wardens the matter would have
easily died down had one student not called up Mrs. Maneka Gandhi who
then intervened. On learning that Mrs. Gandhi has been informed the
warden casually issued a letter to Yoronso asking him to vacate his
hostel accommodation. Yoronso is due to submit his Ph.D on 21st July
2008 and was already in the process of vacating his room prior to this
tragic event which he perpetrated thus Warden's action can only be
termed as adding insult to injury but understandably so because the
Wardens at JNU are a cowardly bunch of self-serving narcissists,
spineless sycophants who eschew controversy and pathetically
ingratiate themselves with administrators and are normalized into
silence and conformity in order to win their bid for tenure. So to
expect stern action from them is mythical.
"I would like to mention here that this is not an isolated incident
but a periodical event which recurrently takes place on JNU Campus as
demonic north-eastern boys gather amidst a beer induced bravado and
haul up street dogs that are later mercilessly decimated and
barbecued. Adding to our sequence of grief JNU Administration is
consciously aware of these hideous acts and yet they remain
inconsiderate.
Posted by: "Yana Banerjee Bey"
Fri Jul 11, 2008 7:40 am (PDT) Dear All,
I am pasting below an account by a student of one of India's premier
institutions, the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, who was an
eyewitness to what happened in room 248 of Kaveri Hostel, JNU in the
pre-dawn hours of July 8, 2008. The other students were so sickened
that one called the police, another called Maneka Gandhi (an animal
rights activist who is part of the Nehru-Gandhi family), one wrote
this account and emailed it, others did a signature campaign. So this
info is from these students, the insiders.
"FROM A STUDENT WHO KNEW KALI, THE DOG WHO WAS MURDERED
"There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls
and one such night was Monday when Kali, an eight year old female
Indian Street Dog was brutally robbed off her life at JNU Campus, New
Delhi
Kali never knew any comforts because eight years ago she was born and
raised on the unforgiving streets by a doting mother called Leela that
gave birth to her in the bushy interiors near Kaveri Hostel on JNU
Campus. They suffered the cold of the winter and the heat of the
summer and had little to eat but yet they were happy. Little Kali
would often be bullied and stoned by the rogue and rowdy boys of
Kaveri hostel yet she never complained and would quickly forget her
bruises and tormentors to go foraging with Leela to the nearest
dumpster.
"Years went by and life was sailing through until a few Naga boys
moved into the Kaveri Hostel, an event that would plague Kali's life
forever.
"The Naga boys had a blatant disregard towards both Kali and Leela and
awaited an opportune moment to slice and stew them both for a
licentious feast of dog-meat. Thus in the fall of 2006 they executed
their intentions by lynching Leela who was an ageing bitch. Leela was
ambushed and assaulted till she succumbed to her mortal injuries, the
Naga boys were all set to exploit their culinary interests from her
carcass but had to abruptly abort as their butchery began to draw
crowds. Fearing an uproar, a cover up act ensued jointly authored by
the Hostel management and the Naga folks, to silence all eloquence
they posthumously labeled Leela falsely as an aggressive dog and
justified the gruesome slaughter, hours later Leela's corpse was
shoved into a sac and placed near the same dumpster where she and Kali
used to go and forage, Kali sat orphaned next to her mother's
mutilated corpse until Vatavaran an NGO took the carrion away.
Continued
NARESH
- 1 hour
ago
- expressindia.com
thank you dearest MONIKA for letting us know,
i'll send the required mails,
GOD BLESS YOU
JNU : Dog Butchered Alive
This post was modified from its original form on 16 Jul, 22:22
Woman who fed dog has alleged she was threatened with same fate as the animal for filing police complaint
Soma Kotian, 50, a resident of Valmiki Housing Society at Kalina has alleged that she is is being threatened by some residents as she filed a complaint against them for cruelly beating a street dog who had taken shelter in their society.
After thrashing the creature and then gouging one of its eyes out, these residents are now even threatening that they will kill the dog to erase the evidence alleges Kotian.
She says that the dog had taken shelter in one of the buildings in the complex in order to escape the heavy rains.
“The dog, Kalu, would always came to our society to take shelter during afternoon or in rains,”she said.
“I registered a complaint at Vakola police station on July 31 and even informed the secretary about what these people have done with Kalu. I have been feeding 15 stray dogs for the last 15 years in this area. These all dogs have been around since the construction of society. At that time, they were puppies. Now they are a part of our society.,” said Kotian .
“I have asked the police to take action under Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act, 1960.
“Some of the culprits have now threatened to bash me up as they did to Kalu. Some have even said they would kill the dog and thus wipe off any evidence,” said Kotian.
Kalu,
who was beaten for taking shelter in Valmiki Housing Society at Kalina,
with Gudisha Vaidya from the animal protection group, IDA and Soma
Kotian (circle)Another resident, Gelevieve Lobo, said these dogs are harmless.
“They never pounce on any of us who live here.
“Infact, they keep a watch on suspicious elements. I don’t know why the dog were beaten up so badly. After these threats, we have decided to shift Kalu to an animal hospital at Parel,” she said.
Fiza Shah and Gudisha Vaidya from In Defence Of Animals (IDA) group, said she would follow up the matter seriously unless the culprits are caught.
“Policemen at Vakola police station were at first reluctant to register our complaint. Now, they have assured us of firm action against the guilty.”
“Kalu is injured seriously and needs proper medication. A few days ago, residents killed a dog by poisoning its food,” she added.
Ashok Shah, secretary of the society, said the issue will be discussed at the society meeting on August 9.
“It is fine if she feeds stray dogs, but she should not do so inside the society. If somebody has done some mischief, appropriate action will be taken,” he said.
When contacted, a policeman at Vakola police station said the case is being investigated.
Man has turned against his proverbial best friend with barbaric ferocity in a pocket of south Calcutta where residents of a slum are hunting down stray dogs with a vengeance.
At least 15 strays roaming the lanes of Ramesh Mitra Road, in Bhowanipore, have been tormented and tortured ever since one of them sank its teeth into some residents a month ago.
Tethered to a garbage vat with a rope tied around its hind leg, one of the assaulted dogs lay whimpering last Saturday until someone took pity and called in volunteers from the animal shelter Ashari.
The critically injured dog, said to be three-four years old, died early on Monday.
“The dog’s jaw was partially paralysed. It was evident that the animal had been mercilessly beaten. It was running a temperature, which is what happens when an animal is in trauma. We did our best but could not save it,” said Shankar Kar of the Dhapa dog pound, where Ashari had sent the stray.
Contrary to what the perpetrators of the crime alleged, the dog had no symptoms of rabies.
The Banerjees of Ramesh Mitra Road witness the torture of strays every other day. “The dogs are beaten up mostly when there is a power cut in the area. A dog is caught and dragged to the vat, and the assault continues till the animal stops moving,” Arunima Banerjee told Metro, wincing at the thought.
“We call Bhowanipore police station to report these incidents, but no action is taken,” she added.
Debasis Chakrabarti, the managing trustee of People for Animals, said the police should have booked the culprits under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act that has been incorporated into the Calcutta Police Act (see box).
The deputy commissioner of police (south), Rajesh Subarna, said appropriate action would be taken if a written complaint was filed. “I request residents to file a written complaint. We will take lawful action.”
A mechanic in one of the automobile repair shops dotting the locality said dying strays were being regularly dumped in the garbage vat. “When we open our garage in the morning, we find dogs in the vat or lying near it. But we have never seen the people responsible for it,” said Arpan Das of Mondal Motors.
Kalipada Rang, a slum dweller, claimed he didn’t know any neighbour who had tortured a stray. “But we have seen some injured dogs in the area since one of them bit some people a month ago.”
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080829/jsp/calcutta/story_9759143.jsp
Relief for Street Dogs: It's a dog's life, as the saying goes. The hapless animals are frequently beaten up and killed. But now the dogs (and other animals) have the law to help these animals lead quality life with the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
