An Appeal to Bharata Bharati Visitors from PETA
I am writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, the most well-known animal welfare organisation in India, to respectfully ask that the visitors to Bharata Bharati join us in urging Air India not to renege on its promise to stop transporting animals to laboratories for use in cruel experiments. The assistance of visitors to Bharata Bharati in this regard would add a tremendous boost to our campaign.
In March, Air India followed the lead of many progressive airlines, including FedEx, UPS, Cathay Pacific, Korean Airlines, EVA Air and Jet Airways, by vowing not to ship animals to laboratories after representatives from PETA explained how animal tests cause extreme suffering. In one recent experiment, male beagles’ legs were cut open so that transmitters could be inserted into them, tubes were forced into their penises and they were repeatedly injected with experimental drugs. Young dogs are commonly poisoned to death in toxicity tests after being force-fed chemicals for months. Other animals are burned, blinded, cut open, starved, drugged and killed in experiments.
Aside from being inhumane – and against the principle of ahimsa – these experiments do not help humans. Vast physiological differences exist between species, and the results from animal experiments cannot be accurately applied to human beings.
We know that Bharata Bharati visitors respect all living beings, both human and non-human. Their comments would surely influence a company that wants to accommodate and satisfy Hindu passengers and others who care about animals. Your help would be of great value to PETA, as it could truly save countless animals.
Below is a sample letter to the chair of Air India. Visitors are free to use it in its entirety or to change it to their liking. The letter can then be e-mailed to the MD of Air India, Mr. Rohit Nandan, at rohit.nandan@airindia.in. — Dr. Chaitanya Koduri, Scientific Adviser to PETA
Copy the letter below into an email, date and sign it, and send it to the Air India MD Rohit Nandan at rohit.nandan@airindia.in.
Rohit Nandan
Chair and Managing Director
Air India Limited
Air India Building
Nariman Point
Mumbai 400 021
[Day / Month / 2012]
Dear Mr Nandan,
I recently learned from my friends at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India that Air India is reneging on its compassionate promise to stop shipping animals to laboratories for use in cruel experiments. On behalf of people who care about animals all over the world, I respectfully ask that you kindly reconsider your decision.
By transporting animals to laboratories, you will not only hurt sentient beings, who are made of flesh, bone and blood, just as we are, but also tarnish your reputation and alienate compassionate passengers, including Hindus and others who believe that the Divine exists equally in all living beings, both human and non-human.
Caring travellers admire and support Jet Airways, FedEx, UPS, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, EVA Air, Emirates, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines and China Airlines for banning or restricting shipments of animals to laboratories. Wouldn’t Air India like to rejoin this list of progressive airlines with compassionate policies?
When making your decision, I ask that you consider not only the business implications of participating in actions that harm animals but also the future of the animals. Like us, animals can feel pain, anxiety, loneliness, love and joy. When we show kindness and compassion to animals, we prove that we are merciful, benevolent beings who are worthy of all the blessings in our lives.
Please bring back the ban on transporting animals to laboratories. Will you let me know what you plan to do so that I can share the information with my followers? Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
[Your name here]
Filed under: india | Tagged: air india, animal cruelty, animal rights, animal welfare organisation, aviation, capitalism, ethics, globalisation, hindu, india, non-violence, PETA, psychological warfare, science, transportation, values, vivisection |
BHARATA BHARATI 
Importing lab set to get Beagle bite – Express News Service – Chennai – 2nd December 2012
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forest will soon slap a show cause notice on a Bangalore-based research firm that illegally imported over 400 Chinese beagle puppies for purported research, two years after its experiment got over.
Addressing a press conference, Union Environment and Forest Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said Bangalore-based pharma lab Advinus had sought permission to import 434 beagle puppies for conducting experiments on behalf of a US-based firm.
It was the sixth consignment of 70 puppies that arrived at the Chennai airport in October, which drew the attention of PETA officials and vice chairman of Animal Welfare Board of India Dr Chinny Krishnan.
The documents showed that the puppies, which were four to nine months old, were imported via Cathay Pacific airlines as pets. Officials later found that the pups were meant for conducting toxicology experiments for a US-based firm.
The lab had already conducted experiments using 270 puppies in 2010.
Natarajan said her ministry wanted to know the fate of the remaining puppies. “The experiment is already over in 2010, so we want to know what were they are going to do with the 434 puppies. Although we don’t know the fate of the earlier batch of puppies, which were being imported since last year, we are curious about the fate of 70 puppies,” said the minister, who visited the Animal Quarantine Department and Certification Station at Pallikaranai.
The issue will also be discussed by the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experimentation on Animals (CPCSEA) on Monday.
Any research is welcome in India but it should follow strict guidelines. “India follows the ahimsa doctrine and voiceless animals should not be misused,” she said. Natarajan added that her ministry intends to make a new Bill on animal welfare more stringent.
At present, there are 1,600 registered labs in India, some of which could be illegally importing animals for research, the minister feared.
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Done it, and hope that Air India would stick to its promise..
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