HC animal welfare panel member asks cops to stop illegal slaughter near NMIA

Navi Mumbai: In a new twist to the issue of illegal animal slaughter near the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport, a member of the Bombay High Court-appointed Animal Welfare Act Monitoring Committee has stepped in and requested the police to act.

NatConnect Foundation has drawn the attention of the High Court mandated committee’s honorary member, Soorraj Saha, to the fact that the illegal slaughter and open sale of mutton continues despite the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) advisory to the airport authorities to have it stopped.

Responding, Saha has pointed out to the Navi Mumbai police commissioner that these shops are proliferating in blatant violation of the provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

“I observed that the raw meat waste which is not disposed of properly, attracts many birds for feeding near flying zones and might pose a serious threat to the aircraft at the Navi Mumbai airport,” he said concurring with NatConnect director B N Kumar’s complaint to the DGCA.

He said he has verified the complaints personally on the ground and found them to be valid. He has also taken up the case with the local police station but no officer appeared to be interested in taking any action.

Saha even offered to conduct raids on these illegal shops and requested for police force. “It is our responsibility as members of the High Court appointed committee to check violations of the Animal Welfare Act,” Saha said.

The illegal and unhygienic slaughter poses a serious risk to public health and environmental safety, he observed.

Since there was no action by the Navi Mumbai airport authorities despite DGCA director Amit Gupta’s advisory to stop the slaughter near the airport, Kumar has filed a fresh complaint through the PMO public grievance website.

This is a flagrant violation of the aircraft norms that the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) which says there shall be no slaughter of animals within 10 km radius of any airport, Kumar pointed out.

In fact, this DGCA norm is a prominent part of the Government Resolution issued by the Maharashtra Government while appointing the Aerodrome Environment Management Committee (AEMC) for the NMIA.

Local people and activists have been raising their voice and in fact Ulwe city NCP (Ajit Pawar) president Santosh Kate has written to CIDCO, the Raigad district collector and other officials against the menace of open selling of goat mutton and chicken meat, throwing to winds all norms of hygiene.