Camels rescued from slaughter perish in custody

In move that went counterproductive,  over 11 rescued camels perished due to starvation and ill health during the last 48 hours at a farm near Abdullahpurmet here. These were among the 97 camels rescued by the police on 16 November from Shaheen Nagar.

These docile animals were illegally shifted from Rajasthan in overloaded trucks and kept in very unhygienic conditions. Two persons were arrested for the illegal slaughter and sale of camel meat.

Initially, the police shifted the camels to a goshala at Pedda Amberpet and were planning to send them back to Rajasthan with the help of animal welfare groups. However, 20 camels died at the Goshala in a fortnight. Balapur sub-inspector Vishnu Vardhan Reddy said that the all the rescued camels will be sent to Rajasthan once the treatment is completed.

However, the veterinary department of the animal husbandry wing, GHMC, which was supposed to look after the camels, till the court proceedings were complete, did not bother to provide them the food and medicine out in the open. While 11 camels died at the Abdullahpurmet site, two died in the past two days. With the animal rights activists demanding action, the GHMC on Saturday removed the carcasses of the dead animals with the help of bulldozers and sent a vet team to provide treatment to the sick animals.

"Camels are suited to the drought conditions and can withstand heat. But these animals were inhumanly treated. They were transported in lorries from far off Rajasthan without proper nutrition. Many were severely injured. They need human touch," Dattu of People For Animals (PFA) said. He demanded the authorities to take urgent measures to save the remaining camels.