The capital complex administration on Friday issued an executive order prohibiting display and sale of meat along the National Highway 415. Officials have been asked to crackdown on illegal slaughterhouses and take action for violation of the order. This is not the first time that the administration has tried to curb the illegal slaughterhouses with its unsightly display of meat and tethered animals which give commuters and visitors a horrid picture of the state capital.

However, previously all such orders fell flat as the administration badly faltered in the execution part.

In 2014, the closure of a slaughterhouse in Abotani Colony of Itanagar by the administration following complaints by residents was a welcome intervention. But as rightly anticipated the slaughter house returned back to business after a courtesy closure and is doing business as usual even as we speak.

Apart from being a disturbing sight, display of meat along busy streets also raises serious questions about the quality of these products. 

Experts say processing, value addition and quality control of milk and meat needs special focus because of perishable nature of the produce, especially keeping in view the increased demand for protein. But ironically India is the only country where these powers rest with the officials of the health department and not with veterinary officials who apparently are more in the know of things while dealing with animals and its products.

The world remains divided as to whether humans should embrace vegetarianism in totality but as there seems to be no remote possibility of that happening, so therefore strict rules and regulations must be adhered to in order to safeguard human lives from possible contagious diseases that could pass on from intake of animal-based products at the same time ensuring to make the slaughtering process as humane as possible. 

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001 states that no slaughter should be carried out within a municipal area except in licensed slaughter house, animals must be certified by a veterinary doctor, and no animal which is pregnant, or has an offspring less than three months old, or under the age of three months must not go under the knife.

The administration must work on the above points which are the core issues instead of just window dressing.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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