A day after animal rights activist and former minister Maneka Gandhi sharply criticized the UT administration for building a bird aviary, the Animal Welfare Council wrote to the senior forestry curator of the ‘UT regarding the matter, urging the administration to follow Council directives and take all legal clearances for the project.

In the letter to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Wildlife in Chandigarh, the Secretary of the Animal Welfare Council, Dr SK Dutta, said: “It is stated that the Council has received an email from the President. from the Second Innings Association indicating that the Forestry Department, Chandigarh, walks in a bird aviary in UT, with over 1,500 birds of over 40 rare species. He was also informed that these birds will be kept in enclosures in the form of mesh layers that will cover the trees so that the birds cannot fly away. In addition, he was also informed that the birds are bought on the open market. In this regard, it is reported that the AWBI requested to properly implement the instructions of the High Court of Gujarat and the High Court of Delhi with reference to the provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Persons Act 1960. animals.

He also said that in another letter sent to police stations, senior forestry officials and wildlife chiefs, officials were ordered to end the illegal bird markets that operate in every town. .
He added that “birds can be kept in pet stores registered under the Pet Store Rules 2018, veterinary clinics / hospitals, and pet owners registered under the Pet Registration Rules (2001)” , adding that the purchase of birds should only be made from authorized sellers, while the display of animals in a zoological garden for educational or scientific purposes is exempt under the 1960 Law on prevention of cruelty to animals.

The AWB also mentioned that many aerial birds in India are covered by the various schedules of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and the necessary authorization must be obtained from the Wildlife Department for their purchase.

Letter from MANEKA TO UT
Maneka Gandhi had reprimanded the Chandigarh administration on Monday over the bird aviary project, saying that “now is not the time to start this illegal and expensive business, which is a bird cage”.

It was on the representation of RK Garg, president of the Second Innings Association, that Gandhi took action and sent a letter to the administration of Chandigarh, which had launched a call for tenders on July 22 for the construction of a bird aviary.

In his letter to the vice president of the administrator of Chandigarh, Singh Badnore, Gandhi said: “It was brought to my knowledge that the administration of Chandigarh launched a tender on July 22, 2021, requesting to purchase 1,500 rare exotic birds for a walk-in aviary. It’s illegal. No one is allowed to sell birds in this country, and sellers are regularly arrested and jailed. By asking vendors to sell you birds – many of which are not raised in India but smuggled from other countries where they are becoming increasingly rare – you are breaking all international CITES laws. For a government to encourage criminals is not correct.
She added that all animal or bird collections for public display come under the zoo title.

“No zoo can be established in the country without permission from the central zoo authority. It was not taken. At a time when India is host to bird flu which is zoonotic, now is not the time to start this illegal and expensive business, ”she said in her letter. Gandhi also clarified that “the current zoos are in a mess with high mortality”.

A RESIDENT LAUNCHES A CAMPAIGN
UT resident Ashok Tiwari has started a “Pinjra Tod” campaign, urging officials and people not to put birds in cages.