Cruelty to Animals
All laws of benevolence forbid cruelty to animals. In the case of animals, cruelty cannot be justified by any plea, for the poor creatures can do little to defend themselves.
Cruelty to animals takes many forms. It is inflicted mainly by those who have little knowledge of how indispensable various species are to maintain the delicate balance of nature.
At the top of the list is a kind of ‘government sponsored’ cruelty Which is obvious from the sorry state of our zoos where animals are kept in cramped cages, some of which ‘stink’ so badly that one cannot muster the Strength to have a closer look at the animals. The most horrifying example of cruelty is behind the lab doors—young animals in the laboratory are tormented in the name of research and experimentation, It is known that about. 60,000 chemicals are used in the manufacture of cosmetics and these are often tested on rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, mice and monkeys. Corrosive chemicals are poured into the eyes to ascertain irritation to cornea. Animals are frozen in ice and placed on hot plates to determine tissue deterioration. Approximately ten million animals are killed in experiments every year.
Other instances of cruelty reported from the world over include rare species like Liver Ridley turtles getting enmeshed in the nets of the trawlers, resulting in suffocation, or spinal-tailed lizards Sold to make aphrodisiacs. Their necks are snapped in the presence of potential customers. Sharks fins are cut and the poor creatures flung back into the sea to die a painful death. Frog legs, that are treated as delicacy are chopped likewise. The fur of juvenile chiru deer is used for making exotic toosh `shawls’. In spite of laws’ hundreds of animals and birds are trapped and killed mindlessly in- the name of custom and tradition.
There are laws which have been stipulated exclusively to save the rare and fast diminishing species. For instance article 15A(G) of the Constitution that aims to protect and improve the natural environment. Another similar law is the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. But the anomaly is that none of these laws are sufficiently implemented. For instance, the Wildlife Protection Act was amended in 1991 but it has not been able to stall the trade of exotic birds of India.
It is obvious that laws alone cannot protect the animals from extinction. It will only happen when we learn to love and recognize the sanctity of all forms of life–human as well as animal.
