The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960

Summary of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960
Key Provisions
• Definitions
• Defines important terms such as animal, captive animal, domestic animal, owner, and phooka (an illegal practice used to increase milk production).
• Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI)
• Establishes the Animal Welfare Board of India to:
• Advise the Government on animal welfare laws and policies.
• Promote animal welfare organizations.
• Spread awareness about the humane treatment of animals.
• Recommend measures to prevent cruelty.
• Cruelty to Animals
• Declares various acts as cruelty, including:
• Beating, kicking, overloading, or torturing animals.
• Keeping animals in inadequate shelter or without sufficient food and water.
• Abandoning animals.
• Using injured or unfit animals for work.
• Organizing or promoting animal fights.
• Administering harmful substances to animals.
• Experiments on Animals
• Permits scientific experiments on animals only under prescribed conditions and regulations.
• Provides for oversight through rules framed under the Act.
• Performing Animals
• Requires the registration of certain performing animals.
• Empowers authorities to prohibit or regulate performances that involve cruelty.
• Prohibition of Certain Practices
• Prohibits cruel practices such as phooka and doom dev, which involve causing pain to milch animals to increase milk production.
• Penalties
• Prescribes penalties for acts of cruelty, including fines and, in certain cases, imprisonment.
• Penalties increase for repeat offenders, though many of the original fines under the Act have been criticized as being too low.
• Power to Make Rules
• Empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out the provisions of the Act, including rules relating to transport, housing, breeding, experimentation, and the welfare of animals.

Legislative History:

The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960

Act Title - The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960

Act Number / Year - 59 of 1960

Act ID (India Code) - 196059

Presidential Assent Date - December 26, 1960

Enforcement Date - April 1, 1961

Nodal Ministry - Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare

Precedent & Historical Rationale

● Modernization of Animal Protection Laws - Enacted to repeal and replace the outdated Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1890, creating a comprehensive framework to prevent unnecessary pain or suffering inflicted on animals.

● Establishment of the Animal Welfare Board of India - Formulated to establish a statutory advisory body (the Animal Welfare Board of India) under Section 4 to promote animal welfare, regulate experiments on animals, and advise the government on legal safeguards.

Parliamentary Trajectory & Enactment

● Formulation - Introduced following recommendations by expert committees and animal welfare advocates (led by Rukmini Devi Arundale) to enforce humane treatment of animals across the nation.

● Parliamentary Passage - Debated and passed by both Houses of Parliament (Second Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) in December 1960.

● Presidential Assent - Received Presidential Assent on December 26, 1960.

● Enforcement - Enforced on April 1, 1961.

Source - Official Record of Parliament, India Code, and Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare