Animal lovers body holds 2-day protest against ‘unacceptable’ pet shop rules
of Pet Lovers Association (PLA) held a two-day protest at Jantar Mantar on Saturday-Sunday against the “unacceptable” rules proposed last year for controlling the keeping and breeding of pets by the Animal Welfare Board of India and Union ministry of environment and forests.
The protest, held on March 4 and March 5, was attended by more than 100 persons comprising of owners of pets and pet shops.
PLA members and volunteers said that they were protesting against the upcoming Pet shop Rules 2016 and law commission report 261, which are expected to be implemented this year.
“The proposed rules for dog breeding and trading are unacceptable. For example, one rule says that a pet shop should have a 100 sq feet area for each pet. That is equivalent to a small room. Now in India, majority of pet shops consist of not more than two rooms. If this rule is implemented, pet shop owners will have to close down their shops and find employment elsewhere,” said Rajan Prasad, member, PLA.
Another proposed rule that the members were protesting against was that pet shops should be wellventilated and equipped with security guards or attendants to look after pets after the owner leaves the shop. Protesters said that this rule will prove very costly for the shop owners.
Hari Kumar (50), owner of a small pet shop in Badarpur, said he didn’t have sufficient money to install ventilation and fire-fighting equipment in line with the proposed rules.
“Running a pet shop isn’t profitable. I have to do a part time job to pay my children’s school fees anyway. There isn’t sufficient money to run the house. Where shall I get money to install ventilators? Also the rules say that a license is mandatory. But I cannot afford to buy application form for a license which costs more than ₹1,000,” said Kumar.