Dog show faces animal board hurdle

http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/dehradun/108761-dog-show-faces-animal-board-hurdle.html

Questions are being raised about a dog show to be organised in Dehradun on December 8 and 9 due to the illegalities resulting from the organiser not being registered by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI).

People for Animals, Uttarakhand member secretary and AWBI co-opted member Gauri Maulekhi has appealed to the Surveyor General of India Dr Swarna Subba Rao, AWBI chairman Maj Gen (retd) Dr RM Kharb, Uttarakhand director general of police Satyavrat Bansal and Dehradun District Magistrate Dr BVRC Purushottam to issue necessary instructions to prevent this show from taking place without due permissions and registration.

Maulekhi states that it is a legal requirement for any dog show organiser to obtain a certificate of registration by the Animal Welfare Board of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India before exhibiting or causing to exhibit or even to train any animal to be exhibited at a public show.

There is a fee charged for participation for each animal by the Doon Valley Kennel Club, so the club is responsible for ensuring that all participants are duly registered since it is a completely commercial activity. This is covered under the Sections 21, 22, 23, 24, and 26 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960. A circular has also been issued by the Uttarakhand Animal Welfare Board, Dehradun in this regard.

“Dogs with cropped ears and docked tails will be exhibited at the show as has been observed in past years which is an offence under Section 11 (l) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960. A circular has been issued by the Animal Welfare Board of India in this regard.

The Doon Valley Kennel Club has obtained no registration certificate for the animals that will be exhibited and trained for exhibition on December 8 and 9 at the Survey Stadium and grounds at Hathibadkala in Dehradun, nor have they even applied to obtain the same.

The publicity and propaganda for this event and the ongoing registrations being held at a shop on Rajpur Road are misleading the participants into believing that this ‘dog show’ is being organised with prior permissions, which amounts to fraud under section 419, 420 and 423 of the Indian Penal Code.”

She further alleges that not a single member/breeder of this ‘club’ is registered with the AWBI but they have been selling pups and advertising for the same in newspapers with open disregard for the authorities. The event has little to do with animal welfare, as is being advertised by the organiser.

“Dog shows only encourage the forced breeding of more and more dogs in a country like ours where we are already struggling with stray dog overpopulation. The illegal breeders force back to back pregnancies on pedigreed bitches and keep them confined in poor conditions as has been revealed by PFA raids in Dehradun in the past,” she stressed.