Navi Mumbai: Following calls and emails from concerned citizens about a café in Mira Road, Thane, keeping 37 cockatiels and nine sick rabbits in dingy, filthy cages, without adequate food, water or mental stimulation, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) intervened in the matter, resulting in the rescue and rehabilitation of the animals.
PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way” – points out that caging birds violates The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which stipulates that it’s illegal to keep or confine any animal in a cage or other receptacle that does not provide them with a reasonable opportunity for movement – and for an aerial bird, that means flight. PETA India local volunteer, Abhishek Kumar, visited the café and convinced the management to allow the animals to be rescued. After the rescue, the birds and rabbits underwent health check-ups and received treatment. All of the animals were sent to Kalote Animal Trust, an animal rescue sanctuary, for permanent rehabilitation.