Animal rights and Maneka Gandhi







The current fracas over culling of animals reminds me of an amusing scene from Tom and Jerry. Tom, in his usual playful mood, chases Jerry around the house. Jerry, in his mouselike agility,   jumps to the top of the windowsill, and Tom crashes against the wall, his face a flat pancake.

See the simile ? The use of animal allegory apart, Maneka Gandhi has taken on the role of Jerry against  Tom,  the vastly more powerful  ministry represented by Mr. Prakash Javadekar. And is probably hoping she will pull it off.

Not surprising. Many moons ago, it was the same lady who had campaigned against the drinking of cow milk , to save the cow. And today,she is the saviour of langoors and nilgais in distress.

Which doesn't mean that animal should be killed indiscriminately.Is the government being heavy handed here ? My  opinion would be...No. Today's polity is mature enough to understand environmental implications, and the glare of foreign agencies on India's actions , surveying every move. The culling would have been based on ground realities, since the man- animal conflict is a reality. The rampages of tuskers in Bengal' s villages, such as the district of Purulia, show that man- animal relationships are not so romantic as environmentalists and activists often portray. While the culling, if required at all , has to be strictly within the limits, it would be fair if Ms. Gandhi looked at the underlying factors behind such a decision . 

And while at it,probably Ms. Gandhi would do well to remember that animals can be a menace in cities too ( ferocious stray dogs as an example- I  remember them attacking children in Delhi a few years ago). Hopefully she will not protest against their culling in the future.

Comments

  1. ManiparnaJune 12, 2016 at 3:27 AM

    Oh yes...the rampage of elephants in the villages of Purulia and north Bengal...the villagers often pay heavy for the frenzied actions of those animals.

    Such decisions should be taken more wisely. An one-sided view will never do any good.

    Nice article... :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. AbhiJune 12, 2016 at 4:23 AM

    Thanks, Maniparna :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. indu chhibberJune 12, 2016 at 4:53 AM

    Very succinct piece.I too believe that the animal lovers often go overboard.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Pradeep NairJune 13, 2016 at 6:25 AM

    A couple of points:

    1) I have noticed that the most vociferous proponents of animal conservation are people who are never threatened by them. For ex: people who support street dogs are usually people who never have to venture out at night, or have to drive two-wheeler back home after work at night. Another example: a farmer whose crop is eaten away by wild animals would think of saving his crop rather than saving wild animals at the cost of his crop.

    2) Our public servants - politicians and bureaucrats - are woefully short of ideas when it comes to conserving wild life. Our solution is kill, instead of providing alternative habitats, because it's easier to kill than do something constructive.

    ReplyDelete
  5. LindaJune 20, 2016 at 10:51 AM

    Here in Quebec, Canada, a lady was killed after being attacked by a Pitbull. Now Quebec wants to ban the breed but I am not so sure banning a particular breed is the answer, because any dog can attack.

    ReplyDelete

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