The Department of Ecology and Environment has told urban local bodies, including the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), to shut down slaughterhouses that have not implemented the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001.
Officials in the department told The Hindu on Sunday that there were 3,100 illegal slaughterhouses in the State. The six licensed slaughterhouses are in Bangalore, Mysore, Mangalore, Dharwad, Chitradurga, Davangere and Karwar.
In a three-page note to the BBMP Commissioner and the Commissioner of Municipal Administration, Sogadu Shivanna, Minister for Ecology and Environment, said that urban local bodies should regularly monitor slaughterhouses and prevent pollution in the area.
A majority of slaughterhouses and meat stalls in cities, particularly in Bangalore, are located in congested residential areas, and they slaughter goats/sheep within their residential premises without adhering to rules, officials said.
The department had received complaints that slaughterhouses had been polluting environment by improper disposal of blood and hides of animals. Slaughtering of animals aged less than three and those that are pregnant are banned. And, it is mandatory to get certification from veterinarians. Slaughtering of animals outside the premises of slaughterhouses is also not allowed.
The rules ban hiring people aged less than 18 in slaughterhouses. People suffering from communicable diseases or infectious diseases should not slaughter an animal. Only a person certified by the local municipal body should be allowed to do slaughtering.
