Upholding The Safety and Dignity of Animals: An overview of the Contribution by RSW Foundation

Humans have learnt to be more compassionate nurturers because of their interdependence on the animal community, there have been revolutionary changes in our day-to-day life because of the silent and non-credited contribution of the animal kingdom; But has the entire humankind except for a few, ever taken a pause and thought about the safety and dignity of the animals? The answer is a resounding NO!

The history of humankind speaks about development through interdependence, revolutionary ideas and practices that aim at ensuring the right to safety and dignity. It’s important to note here that humans have progressed not only because they practised community building and nurturing relationships amongst themselves but also because of the deep connection that they have shared with the flora and fauna in their immediate surroundings.

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act: An Outline

We must take a pause and read through the outline of the “Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act” to understand the plight of these living breathing beings and what change has to be brought into practice. The act outlines what constitutes cruelty against animals, the punishments that one will be subjected to if they do not adhere to the rules and the special provisions that have been made amongst other important factors. The said act was enacted in the year 1960 to prevent the pain and suffering that animals are subjected to without any probable cause and to safeguard the wellbeing of the species by preventing cruelty against them. The act also states that experiments on animals should be avoided and if in case, there is a requirement, the experiments should be carried out with due care and humanity. Due to the proven record of humans, the act also condemns the confinement, chaining and abandoning of the animals amongst other important aspects.

And yet much remains to be done -

An amendment is required in the above-mentioned act and the Reform Social Welfare (RSW) Foundation has been thoroughly vocal about it. The foundation condemns the penalty imposed upon the perpetrators of cruelty against animals because the fine that one has to pay is a maximum of Rs.50, or a jail term of 3 months or both which given the insensitivity prevalent amongst people isn’t compelling enough to persuade humans away from committing crimes such as unnecessary killing and abandoning of animals, experimentations, bestiality (forming a sexual relationship with animals) amongst other gruesome acts which hamper any animal’s right to freedom, dignity and safety. While the draft for amendment has been made, there is still an uncertainty looming around regarding its actual implementation.

An Overview of Our Efforts:

For over a decade, the RSW Foundation has been continuously advocating and working for animal rights with compassion at the core of our work and a sustainable approach. Our vision of creating a just, equitable and safe world encompasses upholding the rights of animals and preventing and restricting the impact of cruelty on them. We undertake the below given sustainable initiatives:

1. The feeding initiative - through this, we ensure that there is a reliable source of food and water for stray dogs, cats and cows for all 365 days of the year.

2. Community engagement - We engage the people of the community to ensure a peaceful co-existence of humans and animals through thought-provoking street plays and distribution of informative leaflets to facilitate empathy amongst the public.

3. Community Outreach - We communicate with people by reaching out to them through various modes so that they feel empowered enough to take action to prevent animal cruelty.

4. Dhaara - Through one of our key workstreams, we address social justice issues with our focused work in various sectors of law making and policy implementation which also comprises animal rights. All of the above work is aimed at making people aware of animal rights and to prevent them from creating harm.

We believe that to make this work of co-existence sustainable for all the decades to come, all the stakeholders of the society, need to come forward and contribute in any capacity that they are able to - you can feed the stray animals in your surroundings, enlighten people through one-to-one conversations amongst many other things. We request you to support us by donating to our foundation’s cause which will enable us to reach out to more animals, make better facilities available for them, make our voices heard in legislation, engage more people to ensure every animal’s safety and dignity and facilitate a better and just world for them!

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