Assam govt bans sale, use of gestation, farrowing crates with scarce space in pig farms

Guwahati, April 11 The Assam government has prohibited the manufacture, sale and use of gestation and farrowing crates with insufficient space in pig farms, officials said on Tuesday.

Assam's Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department (AHVD) Director Indira R. Kalita, in a circular to all zonal and district officials of the department across the state, said that the gestation and farrowing crates are being manufactured and sold illegally and issued in pig farms in violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.

"In the said metal crates, there is insufficient space and it is problematic for the sow (mother pig) and piglets to move since they are to live on their own feces and urine. Further it causes sores and diseases. It is, therefore, asked to prohibit manufacture, sale and use of this type of gestation and farrowing crates in pig farms under your jurisdiction," the circular said.

Meanwhile, the PETA, in a statement on Tuesday, claimed that following its appeal to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and use of gestation and farrowing crates in pig farming, the Director of the AHVD has issued a circular to the concerned officers of all districts, mandating compliance with the group's request within their jurisdictions.

PETA said that confining animals in this way is illegal, a position confirmed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research's National Research Centre on Pig, and is further reiterated in the Assam government's circular.

It said that Assam, home to the highest population of pigs in the country, is the latest of 20 states and Union Territories to issue such directions against the housing of pigs in these contraptions.

Other governments that have issued such kind of circulars include Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

"PETA India commends Assam for standing up for countless pigs and sparing them the severe cruelty of such crates," said PETA India Advocacy Officer, Farhat Ul Ain, in in a statement.

Gestation crates (aka 'sow stalls') are metal cages, essentially the size of a pig, with concrete or slatted floors. In them, pigs are unable to turn around or even stand up without difficulty.

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