The Visaka SPCA, founder Pradeep Kumar Nath, the many other people
involved with it, and the thousands of street dogs and other animals
they serve in Visakhapatnam, India, remain in imminent danger after a
Christmas Eve mob attack on their Animal Birth Control clinic.
The information about the attack presented below,
received by e-mail from Nath, has been verified by telephone by ANIMAL
PEOPLE publisher Kim Bartlett.
ANIMAL PEOPLE can testify from direct knowledge,
including a five-day visit just three weeks ago, that the Visakha SPCA
is one of the outstanding humane organizations in India, and that the
Animal Birth Control program it is operating is both well-managed and
eminently effective.
The civic authorities of Visakhapatnam evidently need to
be reminded that their duties extend to protecting the Visakha SPCA from
violence, upholding the animal protection laws of India, and
apprehending and jailing those responsible for the Christmas Eve attack.
ANIMAL PEOPLE shall be putting this incident on page one
of our forthcoming January/February 2001 edition.
---------------
To Kim Bartlett, ANIMAL PEOPLE publisher,
From "pradeep" <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 07:30:29 +0530
Dear Kim,
As you saw here three weeks ago, the Visakha S.P.C.A.
has been conducting our Animal Birth Control program since Feb. 11th
2000 in a makeshift shelter. This program replaced the heretofore
merciless and extremely cruel way the municipality had of electrocuting
the stray dogs.
Since then we have been struggling to keep pace, making
maximum use of the two veterinarians available to us through the
generosity of our donors, and of our veterinary technician, Teresa
Gibbs, who has been provided by PETA.
Besides this ABC program, as you know, we are also
maintaining a shelter for distressed cattle, protecting wild animals,
protecting sea turtles and dolphins, stopping the illegal slaughtering
of cattle and their illegal and inhumane transport, and protecting
migratory birds and the entire forest cover.
Unfortunately, today -- on Christmas Eve -- about 200
people from the nearby village attacked us with sticks and we exchanged
blows in self defense. Teresa Gibbs was punched on the face as she
charged at one of the attackers who was removing the kennels with dogs
inside and rolling them around like a ball. Some attacked our van and
were removing the air from the tires.
All of this happened in front of two policemen. They
squatted in front of the dispensary and did not allow us to operate. The
one dog brought by the municipality van was let loose by these
miscreants. We believe the mob was comprised of hooligans paid by the
combined efforts of three major political parties. All the news media
were there. There was a complete traffic jam from 9.00 A.M. till 2.00
P.M. The police came, after frantic efforts to get help from them, two
hours after the incident, and as usual asked only stupid questions. As
most of the police were deployed for the Utsav (a festival occurring on
the sea turtle nesting beach, at peril to the turtles who are nesting
even now), few were available to respond to our emergency.
The mob wanted us to stop our operations immediately and
move elsewhere. Their contention is that we should neuter more than 200
dogs per day. They say that the operated dogs are being let loose in the
village, which is not true (they are returned to their locations of
capture), and that their livestock are being eaten (also not true).
The Chief Medical Officer of the Municipality did come
to sort things out but we felt very disappointed when he further
instigated the villagers against us by saying that the Municipality
wanted to kill the dogs which was the only way to control the population
but was not allowed because of us. He was seen giving ideas on how to
petition the District Collector and the court against us.
We have suspended operations. I am asking that an
immediate meeting be arranged between Visakha SPCA, Police Commissioner
A.K. Khan, Municipal Commissioner Sanjay Jaju, and District Collector
J.S.V. Prasad. We are also requesting police protection.
Warm Regards,
Pradeep Kumar Nath,
President,
Visakha S.P.C.A.,
26-15-200, Main Road,
Visakhapatnam 530001 A.P., India
phone: 91-891-564759
fax: 91-891-528662
email: [email protected]
-----------------------
We have the following contact information for the Visakhapatnam
officials:
Shri. A.K. Khan, Commissioner of Police
Phone No: 91-891-525500 (R) or 91-891-562763 (O)
FAX No: 91-891-562763
Shri. J.S.V. Prasad, District Collector
Phone No: 91-891-726999 or 91-891-754106
FAX no: 91-891-564426
email: [email protected]
Shri.Sanjay Jaju, Municipal Commissioner
Phone No: 91-891-754395 (R) or 91-891-746300 (O)
FAX no: 91-891-568545
Shri.H.J.Dora, Director General of Police
Phone No: 91-40-3235170
FAX No: 91-40-3296565
Dr.C.Rangarajan, Governor of Andhra Pradesh
Phone: 91-40-3310521
FAX: 91-40-3311260
-----------------------------
ANIMAL PEOPLE has available for e-mailing photographs of the dog
electrocutions formerly practiced by the city of Visakhapatnam, halted
by Pradeep Kumar Nath of the Visakha SPCA and Christine Townend of Help
In Suffering. These photographs include current attached by two wires to
truck and dogs take up to 25 minutes to die; overcrowded dog cage, kept
in sun without any food or water two days before dogs are electrocuted;
a dog who is alive after 15 minutes of electrocution and a boy is seen
poking with an iron rod to kill the dog; Dogs still alive are killed
with rod; at the back of the van, a brown dog is seen vomiting blood
after electrocution and spearing.
Go on to
Christmas Day
Return to 27 December 2000 Issue
Return to Newsletters
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