Bengaluru City Police and Animal Husbandry Department Invite PETA India to Lead Workshops to Combat Cruelty to Animals

For Immediate Release:

08 August 2025

Contact:

Bengaluru – Over two days, nearly 300 police officers from Bengaluru City Police Commissionerate gathered in the Commissioner’s office to attend a workshop conducted by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) on combating cruelty to animals. A similar workshop was conducted for Assistant Directors and Veterinary Officers of the Animal Husbandry Department, Bengaluru Urban, where their roles and responsibilities for cruelty to animals investigations, along with laws and procedures, were discussed.

The three-hour workshop’s attendees included police head constables, assistant sub-inspectors, sub-inspectors, and police inspectors from east, west, north, south, central, northeast, southeast and central zones of the Bengaluru City Police. The session covered key provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960; the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (as amended in 2022); the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023; and other animal protection laws. A follow-up training session for local volunteers will be held on 09 August to further empower them with knowledge of legal procedures and tips on handling cases.

Photos from the police and Animal Husbandry Department sensitisation workshop are available upon request.

“The role of police and animal husbandry officials is vital in keeping animals safe. We commend Bengaluru City Police and the Animal Husbandry Department, Bengaluru Urban, for their goal of cracking down on cruelty to animals. PETA India is pleased to support them in this effort,” says Meet Ashar, PETA India’s Legal Advisor and Director of Cruelty Response. “Bengaluru taking a zero-tolerance stand on cruelty to animals will protect animals and society at large.”

In 2021, the Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organisations released a report revealing that nearly 500,000 animals had been victims of crimes in the decade prior.

PETA India notes that many violent criminals have a documented history of cruelty to animals. A study published in Forensic Research and Criminology International Journal warns, “Those who engage in cruelty to animals were [three] times more likely to commit other crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, assault, harassment, threats, and drug/substance abuse.”

This important initiative was made possible under the visionary leadership of Ms Sowmya Reddy, General Secretary of All India Mahila Congress (AIMC) and Former Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly; Shri Seemanth Kumar Singh, IPS, Commissioner of the Bengaluru City Police; Shri B Dayanand, IPS, former Commissioner of the Bengaluru City Police who is now posted as the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Prisons; Shri Raja Imam Kasim P, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime-II), Bengaluru City Police and Dr. P. Srinivasu, Director, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Services.

This initiative is part of PETA India’s ongoing efforts to sensitize law enforcement personnel and empower animal rights activists across India to ensure that crimes against animals are addressed with the seriousness they deserve. Similar sensitization workshops have previously been conducted for Border Security Force officials in Gwalior (October 2024); the Chhattisgarh State Police (November 2024); the Goa State Police and Goa Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Services officials (April 2025) along with North and South Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) inspectors and field officers; Pune City Police (April 2025), Nagpur City Police (May 2025); Belagavi and Hubli–Dharwad police, and Belagavi City Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Services officials, along with local animal rescuers/volunteers (June 2025); Sikkim Police, Animal Husbandry Department officials and local animal rescuers/volunteers (July 2025) and Mira-Bhayandar, Vasai-Virar Police Commissionerate (July 2025).

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” – has long campaigned to strengthen the PCA Act, 1960, which contains outdated, inadequate penalties, such as a maximum fine of only Rs 50 for convicted first-time offenders (although the BNS, 2023 prescribes stronger punishments). In a proposal sent to the central government regarding an amendment to the PCA Act, PETA India has recommended significantly increasing penalties for cruelty to animals.

For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

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