AWBI demands crackdown on unregistered e-comm portals selling animals

New Delhi [India], July 17 : E-commerce platforms like OLX and Quikr selling animals online without registration is a complete violation of animal protection laws and must be stopped, Animal Welfare Board of India, a central government body, said on Thursday.
The demand for a crackdown on these online portals has come after People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India appealed to AWBI to stop e-commerce portals such as OLX and Quikr from trading in live animals.
AWBI is a statutory advisory body advising the Government of India's Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying).
The agency also notified the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MoEIT) that these companies are selling live animals without being registered with state animal welfare boards as 'pet shops'.
Under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Pet Shop) Rules, 2018, registration is required, the agency said.
"The Animal Welfare Board of India has called for a crackdown on the illegal sale of vulnerable live animals. Animals suffer when they're traded online as if they were handbags or teacups rather than living, feeling beings, and PETA India is urging people to adopt only from reputable animal shelters that do thorough checks for good homes," Mallika Roy, PETA India Corporate Liaison told ANI.
Most pet shops including online platforms and dog breeders operating across the country are not registered with state boards as required by both the Pet Shop Rules and the Dog Breeding and Marketing Rules, 2017.
In the latest advisory to the MoEIT, the Board acknowledges that despite its advisory, unregistered dog breeders and pet shops continue to indulge in the illegal trade.
It has been largely observed that animals face several mistreatments by breeders and pet shops such as illegal ear and tail mutilations, cosmetic cruelties, confinement of animals and other such behaviours lead to a severe health crisis of the animals, be it a grown-up or newborn, AWBI said.