PETA, Andhra police prevent slaughter of camels

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India with the help of Andhra Pradesh police has prevented slaughter of camels in Anantapur and Kurnool district.

FIRs were registered in two separate cases in Gooty town of Anantapur and in Kurnool town.

In the first case in Gooty, a camel was rescued and shifted to a sanctuary for rehabilitation while in Anantapur two persons were booked for planning to slaughter camels.

Joint efforts by PETA India, along with Andhra Pradesh Animal Welfare Board (APAWB) member Md Idrees, the Anantapur superintendent of police, and the Gooty police rescued a camel. FIR was registered under sections 11 and 26 of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960.

After banner advertising the availability of camel meat was erected in Kurnool, PETA India worked with Md Idrees once again and local animal protection activist Shaik Abdul Sharuk to prevent the slaughter of camels.

On their complaint, Town 1 Police Station registered an FIR on January 31 under sections 109, 429, 289, and 269 read with 511 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860; sections 11(1) and 38(3) of the PCA Act, 1960, read with the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001; and Section 5 of the Rajasthan Camel (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 2015, against two persons accused of being involved in the trade.

Efforts are underway to trace the whereabouts of the camels to facilitate their rescue, PETA said.

"Thanks to the compassion and quick action of the police and others involved in this case, a gentle camel will never be slaughtered or forced to endure cruelty again," says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Sunayana Basu.

The Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, state that only sheep, pigs, cattle, goats, poultry, fish, and rabbits are permitted to be killed for meat, not camels.