Latest news with #PETAIndia
Hans India
7 hours ago
- Health
- Hans India
Palamur Biosciences Faces Scrutiny Amid PETA Allegations, Awaits Official Inspection Report
Mahabubnagar: Palamur Biosciences Pvt. Ltd. (PBS), a leading preclinical research facility in Mahabubnagar, has recently come under public scrutiny following complaints submitted by PETA India. The allegations, reportedly based on claims from a former employee, were widely circulated before PBS was given an opportunity to present its side. In response, a multi-agency inspection involving the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA) and the Animal Welfare Board of India has thoroughly reviewed PBS operations. The organization is now awaiting the committee's official findings. Despite the controversy, PBS maintains that it operates with full regulatory compliance and transparency. Recognized by international and national bodies such as GLP, CDSCO, AAALAC, and OLAW, PBS has been a cornerstone of India's biomedical innovation ecosystem for over 15 years. It is the country's only large-animal testing facility and one of the few in Southeast Asia, playing a vital role in the development of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, vaccines, and agrochemicals. PBS is also home to India's first large-animal-based medical device evaluation center, supported by BIRAC under the 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives. It has validated breakthrough technologies such as artificial hearts, dialysis systems, heart valves, and stents—contributing significantly to India's healthcare advancement. The Directors of PBS emphasized their commitment to ethical research, scientific excellence, and animal welfare, stating, 'We are confident the inspection will confirm our long-standing adherence to the highest standards. Baseless allegations can severely harm India's R&D ecosystem, especially startups that rely on domestic preclinical services.' PBS has urged media, regulators, and the public to await the official report and engage in discourse based on facts, not speculation, to protect the integrity of India's innovation landscape.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Six ailing horses tied up at Dadar beach rescued, FIR registered against 1
Mumbai: Six ailing and emaciated horses tied up at Dadar beach near the Chaityabhoomi Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Memorial, were rescued by the Shivaji Park police following a tip-off from the animal rights group, PETA India. An FIR was registered on Tuesday against one accused, identified as Sachin Maniyar, a resident of the Shivaji Park area, under various sections of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. Earlier on Monday, a PETA India member tipped off the Mumbai police that a few horses were tied up at the beach without any proper shelter from the rains. The horses were apparently unhealthy, with visible injury marks on their bodies. When the police team from Shivaji Park reached the beach, they found a total of six horses tied up there. Two of the horses looked very emaciated, with protruding ribs and backbones, and were suffering from multiple wounds. All were kept in dire conditions. All six horses were transported to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's cattle pound in Malad for medical examination, veterinary care, and safekeeping pending a court decision on their final placement. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch xu hướng AUD/USD? IC Markets Đăng ký Undo "Keeping horses in unlicensed stables and makeshift places is illegal, and using them for rides is cruel," said PETA India Lead Cruelty Response Coordinator, Saloni Sakaria. "Yet, horses like these are forced to suffer injuries, being malnourished and tied in filthy surroundings without adequate shelter. We urge the Mumbai police to act against any illegal use of horse carriages in the city and that BMC should take swift action to prevent the keeping of horses in Mumbai in unlicensed stables," she added. In its complaint, PETA India highlighted the Bombay high court order dated June 8, 2015, in Animals and Birds Charitable Trust v/s MCGM and Others (PIL No. 36 of 2011), which prohibited the use of horse-drawn Victoria carriages for rides within Mumbai and declared the keeping of horses in the city illegal. In July 2017, the high court accepted the rehabilitation plan submitted by the Maharashtra govt for horse-drawn carriage owners and drivers, allowing horses to be removed from Mumbai roads and drivers to receive a payment and/or a vendor licence, thus ensuring their livelihood. PETA India sent a letter in May 2018 urging the then Chief Secretary of Maharashtra to implement this plan immediately by ensuring that the BMC receives the necessary funds approved by the state govt. Numerous horse carriage drivers also gradually switched to heritage-style motorised e-carriages.
Deccan Herald
2 days ago
- Deccan Herald
Telangana police file FIR against research lab for alleged animal abuse
PETA India recently presented a groundbreaking whistleblower expose that uncovered apparent egregious abuse of dogs, rhesus macaques, and minipigs at the Telangana-based facility.
The Print
3 days ago
- The Print
Telangana cops book Palamur Biosciences on animal cruelty charge after PETA ‘house of horrors' exposé
On 10 June, in a post on X, PETA India revealed large-scale animal abuse at the Telangana-based Palamur Biosciences Pvt Ltd, one of India's largest government-registered contract laboratories. The information provided by whistleblowers alleged that the facility was killing dogs and other animals without reason and with extreme cruelty, overcrowding them, and subjecting them to social isolation, among other things. PETA India, while asserting that such instances were not isolated but reflect a 'recurring pattern' in the global animal experimentation industry, called on the government to shut down the facility, which it dubbed a 'house of horrors,' and end animal testing in India. New Delhi: Police in Telangana's Mahabubnagar Tuesday booked Palamur Biosciences Pvt Ltd, a preclinical contract research organisation, on a complaint filed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India which last week cited revelations by a whistleblower to allege a pattern of animal cruelty at the firm's laboratory. The whistleblowers stepped forward to share video footage, images and testimonies after PETA India filed official complaints with authorities about the likely unauthorised testing on rhesus macaques at the same lab in October 2024, the report said. The lab claims it is 'one of the largest preclinical service providers' and tests drugs, pesticides, and medical devices on animals. It also runs a beagle breeding facility, where, according to the report, 1,500 beagles were being kept in a space for about 800. Dr Anjana Aggarwal, PETA scientist and research policy adviser, told ThePrint, 'This is not an isolated incident but rather business as usual, where systemic cruelty runs rampant.' 'Past investigations by regulatory bodies have revealed similar abuse and neglect of animals at other Indian labs, and PETA entities around the world have documented this as a recurring pattern in the global animal experimentation industry,' Dr Aggarwal added. In its report, PETA India had said it submitted a complaint with CCSEA, statutory body under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, as well as the CDSCO, the industry regulator for cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. PETA India has also reached out to the National GLP Compliance Monitoring Authority (NGCMA), under the Union government's department of science and technology (DST), which issues Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) certificates. According to the body's website, 'GLP-compliance certification is voluntary in nature.' ThePrint reached Palamur Biosciences, Committee for the Purpose of Control And Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA), Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and National Good Laboratory Practice Compliance Monitoring Authority (NGCMA) for comment over email but had not received a response by the time of publication. The report will be updated if and when a response is received. Also Read: Indian laws are letting animals down every day. It's a legal, moral, ethical issue Filing complaints only the first step Asked if flagging the issue to relevant authorities was enough, Aggarwal said, 'Filing complaints with regulatory bodies is only the first step. What matters is the enforcement of existing standards. Without swift and meaningful punitive action, cruelty to animals thrives unchecked.' She called for the lab in Telangana to be shut down, saying, 'We urge government regulators to end the torment of animals imprisoned at Palamur Biosciences. Anything less than the facility's permanent shutdown is a green light for abuse.' To better regulate such facilities, she said, 'authorities must conduct genuinely unannounced inspections without advanced notice, ensure full access to historical records and CCTV footage, protect whistleblowers, and impose serious penalties—not mere warnings—for violations.' India, she added, needs to get out of the 'archaic, cruel, and unscientific animal experimentation business,' citing the example of the the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US National Institute of Health (NIH) that 'have already begun the long-overdue transition away from animal testing'. 'Notably, earlier this year, the NIH closed down its beagle laboratory, and the US Navy ended all its testing on dogs and cats, which stands in stark contrast to Palamur Biosciences' breeding and testing on beagles and other animals,' Aggarwal said. What PETA India report said—Inside the 'house of horrors' The report, which PETA said was a first-of-its-kind whistleblower exposé, documented the neglect of dogs, pigs, and monkeys used by Palamur Biosciences. The lab is located in Karvena village, Mahabubnagar district. A whistleblower said that, at the lab, being deemed 'useless' meant certain death for the animal. They shared several instances where animals were allegedly killed, including two involving sick dogs—one with a cherry eye and a beagle with a fungal infection. One whistleblower told PETA India that over 100 dogs were killed in a single incident simply because they were no longer considered 'useful'. According to the PETA report, animals were also being subjected to overcrowding and competition for food, resulting in extreme frustration and frequent fights that often caused serious injuries. Above all, basic treatment, proper wound cleaning, and pain management weren't provided by the company. Rough handling of dogs often led to fractures, the report said. Lab workers also showed cruelty while conducting testing, including studies where 'dogs were injected subcutaneously with test compounds'. 'According to a whistleblower, animals developed abscesses, ulcers, and signs of severe pain following these injections,' it said. A whistleblower alleged that, depending on the location of the abscess, further health issues were seen in the dogs. The report further claimed that the laboratory purchased Göttingen minipigs from Denmark, but does not have a license to breed them. When a minipig was found pregnant, the head veterinarian allegedly ordered the killing of the piglets through intracardiac injection. Despite a policy requiring Palamur to provide playtime for pigs, they are only permitted access to enrichment when customers are around, the report alleged. According to the allegations, among the wild rhesus macaques from Rajasthan, some tested positive for zoonotic pathogens, likely monkeypox. The company simply kept quiet and killed the monkeys, risking infection to others, the report claimed. Riju Chanda is an intern with ThePrint (Edited by Sanya Mathur) Also Read: Goldfish in perfume bottle, protected species on sale—DU students' report on horrors of Delhi pet shops
NDTV
5 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
"If You Wouldn't Drink Dogs' Milk...": PETA India's Ad Promoting Veganism Criticised Online
Animal rights group PETA India is facing criticism online for its latest veganism campaign, launched earlier this month on World Milk Day. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India unveiled a bold and provocative billboard in Mumbai and other cities with the message: "If You Wouldn't Drink Dogs' Milk, Why Drink the Milk of Any Other Species?" The ad features a woman drinking a dog's milk, aiming to challenge speciesism - the bias that favours certain species over others. In a press note, PETA claimed that the billboard has been displayed in several major cities, including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Noida. "There's nothing natural about forcefully impregnating cows and buffaloes, stealing their babies, and consuming the milk meant for their young. PETA India's billboard makes the simple point that people who are disgusted by the idea of drinking dogs' milk should question why they consider it acceptable to consume another animal's milk and go vegan," the group wrote in its press note. PETA India also shared the picture of the billboard on social media, with the caption, "Dairy production is rooted in cruelty, from forced impregnation to the heartbreaking separation of calves from their mothers. Cows are not milk machines; their milk is for calves, not humans. Ditch dairy." PETA India's approach, however, didn't sit well with several social media users as they felt the ad went too far. "This message could've been conveyed differently. This just misses the mark entirely." Another user added, "How do I unsee this now?" wrote one user. "Whoever's on PETA's campaign team needs to log off forever," commented another. "Distasteful ad. There are many other ways to promote veganism, this isn't one. It's disturbing to edit images this way. The only thing going for you, is that dogs can't speak up. Else they definitely wouldn't have liked being edited, presented in such a manner. Sorry," said a third user. Some users, however, defended the campaign, saying, "If this disturbs you, it's because the reality is disturbing. We've just normalised it. Drinking milk from any animal-dog, cow, buffalo-is equally odd. PETA is just asking us to pause and think." "Urgent need for more production of vegan milk with less cost. Will be more impactful if the government starts promoting it," suggested another.
