Animal rights bodies seek closure of monkey sterilisation centres

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, April 23

Animal rights activists today demanded the closure of all seven Monkey Sterilisation Centres (MSC) in Himachal in view of the traumatic and cruel procedure to control their population. However, the Wildlife wing dismissed the allegations levelled in a report submitted to the Animal Wildlife Board of India (AWBI).

A team comprising representatives from the AWBI, the Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar, the People for Animals and the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) had visited the monkey sterilisation centre here on February 27 and 28, 2014. Their report was submitted to the AWBI for necessary action.

“The AWBI has directed the Chief Secretary to take immediate action and comply with the requirements and submit the action taken report,” said PETA representatives. They demanded that the sterilisation programme must be stopped immediately as no standard operating procedure was in place to ensure humane treatment to the monkeys during capture, handling, transport, housing, surgery and post-operative care leading to a lot of pain and trauma for the animals.

Even as PETA released the inspection report, the Chief Wildlife Warden JS Walia dismissed most concerns raised in the report. The team had been assigned the task of inspecting the sterilisation centre at Tutikandi in Shimla by the AWBI to look into complaints of inhumane treatment, pain and suffering under the Prevention to Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

The PETA report has mentioned that monkeys post-surgery had untreated injuries on face and around tail. They even alleged that in some cases abdomen of pregnant monkeys were opened.

Activists have demanded the evaluation of the viability and effectiveness of the monkey sterilisation programme and its replacements by the Monkey Population Management Programme.

“The observations made by a team on monkey capturing have been taken seriously but the team had expressed satisfaction about the entire sterilisation procedure,” said Walia.

He added that the suggestion of the team to get ultrasonography to determine pregnancy in female monkeys had been started and these machines would be included in the inventory. He denied that pregnant monkeys had been operate upon.

He contested the observation made in the report about capturing and said this was done by trained and professional monkey catchers, using standard technique of drop-door capture cage. “There is no physical trauma or stress in big cages which are as per the AWBI specifications,” he said.

He also claimed that the pre and post-operative facilities were used with hygiene and the monkeys were fed properly and proper medication given for healing of surgical wounds.

A total of 94,334 monkeys had been sterilised at the seven centres being run at Tutikandi in Shimla, Sastar in Hamirpur, Gopalpur in Kangra, Baul in Una, Sarol in Chamba, Salapar in Mandi and Paonta Sahib in Sirmour .