Transport of Animals (Amendment)

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 26th March, 2001

S.O.269 (E) – Whereas certain draft rules further to amend the Transport of Animals Rules, 1978 were published as required by sub-section (1) of section 38 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (59 of 1960) under the notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment number S.O. 1164 (E) dated 26th December 2000 in the Gazette of India. Extraordinary, Part 11, Section 3. Sub Section (ii) dated the 27th December, 2000 inviting objections and suggestions from all persons likely to be affected thereby, before the expiry of the period of sixty days from the date on which copies of the Gazette containing the said notification are made available to the public.

And, whereas copies of the said Gazette were made available to the public on the 1st January 2001.

And, whereas no objection or suggestion has been received from the public in respect of the said draft rules by the Central Government.

Now, therefore in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) and (2) of section 38 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 (59 of 1960), the Central Government hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Transport of Animals Rules 1978, namely

1.  (1) These rules may be called the Transport of Animals (Amendment) Rules, 2001.

      (2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. In the Transport of Animal Rules 1978 (hereinafter referred to as the said rules), after chapter VI, the following chapters shall be inserted, namely:

Chapter VII

TRANSPORT OF POULTRY BY RAIL, ROAD AND AIR

76. Definition – In this Chapter unless the context otherwise requires, “Poultry” includes day old chicks and turkey poults, chickens, quails, guinea fowls, ducks, geese and turkeys.

77.General requirement – In transport of poultry by rail, road or air –

(a ) the container shall be properly cleaned and sterilised before the poultry is placed in them

(b) poultry shall not be exposed to the sunlight, rain and direct blast of air during transport.

(c) poultry shall not be transported when the temperature exceeds 25 degrees Celsius or when the temperature falls below 15 degree Celsius.

78. Day-old chicks and turkey poults – In transport of day old chicks and poultry by rail, road and air

(a) chicks and poults shall be packed and dispatched immediately after hatching and shall not be stored in boxes for any length of time before dispatch.

Note: In the said transport endeavour shall be made by the consignor or his agent so that consignments shall arrive at destination within the shortest possible time after being taken out of the incubator. Seventy-two hours shall normally be regarded as the maximum period to be taken trom incubator to brooder in winter and 48 hours in summer;

(b) chicks or poults shall not be fed or watered before and during transportation.

(c) every effort shall be made to ensure that chicks and poults arrive as quickly as possible at the dispatching site

(d) personal attention shall be given by the consignor or the forwarding agent to ensure that all consignments are kept out of direct sunlight, rain and heat;

(e) care shall be taken to carry the boxes in a level position so that chicks are not in danger of falling over on to their backs an’ 11 The putting up of other merchandise over and around chick boxes shall be avoided.

79. Poultry other than day-old chicks and turkey poults

– In transport of poultry other than day old chicks and turkey poult by rail, road or air

(a) the poultry to be transported shall be healthy and in good condition and shall be examined and certified by a veterinary doctor for freedom from infectious diseases and fitness to undertake the journey.

(b) poultry transported in the same container shall be of the same species and of the same age group

(c) poultry shall be properly fed and watered before it is placed in containers for transportation and extra feed and water shall be provided in suitable troughs fixed in the containers.

(d) arrangements shall be made for watering and feeding during transportation and during hot weather, watering shall be ensured every six hours;

(e) male stock shall not be transported with female stock in the same container

80. Road Travel – In transport of poultry by road the container shall not be placed one on the top of the other and shall be covered properly in order to provide light, ventilation and to protect from rain, heat and cold air.

81. Rail Travel – In transport of poultry by rail –

(a) in case the journey is for more than twelve hours, an attendant shall accompany the consignment:

(b) poultry shall not be exposed to rain or direct blast of air;

(c)as far as possible poultry shall be transported in wagons having adequate facilities for ventilation and no other merchandise which may result in mortality of birds shall be loaded in the same wagon;

82. Air travel – In transport of poultry by air or for international transport the containers carrying poultry shall be kept in pressurised compartments with regulated temperature and the container shall preferably be kept near the door and shall be unloaded immediately on arrival.

83. Containers for transportation – In transport of poultry by rail, road or air –

(a)containers used to transport poultry shall be make of such material which shall not collapse or crumble and they shall be well ventilated and designed to protect the health of poultry by giving it adequate space and safety.

(b) the containers shall be so designed as to render impossible for birds to crowd into the corners during transportation, and to avoid the danger of boxes being stocked so close together as to interfere with ventilation.

(c) all the containers shall be clearly labelled showing the name, address and telephone number of the consignor and the consignee.

(d) the minimum floor space per bird and the dimension of the containers for transporting poultry shall be a specified in the Table below, namely :

TABLE

84. Special requirement of containers for chicks and poults – In transport of poultry by road, rail or air –

(a) wire mesh or a net of any material shall not be used as a bottom for the containers.

(b) the container shall be properly secured to avoid pilferage

(c) the following instruction shall be printed on a label and fixed to the lid or printed directly on sides, namely “Care in Transit”.

(d) the consignee shall be informed about the train, transport or flight number and its time of arrival well in advance

(e)poultry shall not be transported continuously for more than 6 hours and whole batch shall be inspected at every 6 hours interval.

(f) the transportation shall not remain stationary for more than 30 min and during this period, it shall be parked in shade and arrangements shall be made for feeding and watering

(g) all precautions against fire shall be taken and provision of fire extinguishers in transport shall be provided.

Chapter – VIII

TRANSPORT OF PIGS BY RAIL OR ROAD

85. DEFINITION – In this chapter, unless context otherwise requires, “pigs” includes piglets, hogs, hoglets and animals of pigs family,

86. Duration of travel – Rules 87 to 95 shall apply to the transport of pigs by rail or road involving journeys of more than six hours.

87. Health Certificate –

(1) A valid health certificate by a veterinary doctor to the effect that the pigs are in a fit condition to travel by rail or road and are not suffering from infectious or contagious or parasitic disease shall accompany each consignment in the transport of pigs by rail or road.

(2) In the absence of a certificate under sub-rule (1), the carrier shall refuse to accept the consignment for transport.

(3) The certificate under sub rule (1) shall be in a form specified in Schedule K

88. Identification of consignor and consignee – For the purpose of this Chapter –

(a) each consignment shall bear a label showing in bold red letters the name, address and telephone number (if any) of the consignor and consignee, the number and type of pigs being transported and quantity of rations and food provided to them.

(b) the consignee shall be informed in advance about the train or vehicle in which the consignment of pigs is being sent and its arrival time.

(c) the consignment of pigs shall be booked by the next train or vehicle and shall not be detained after the consignment is accepted for booking.

89. First aid – In transport of pigs by rail or road.

(a) first-aid equipment shall accompany the pigs;

(b) suitable ramps shall be provided for loading and I unloading the pigs;

(c) in the case of a railway wagon, when the loading or unloading is done on the platform the dropped door of the wagon shall be used as a ramp.

90. Group of pigs – In transport of pigs by rail or road, male young stock shall not be mixed with female stock in the same compartment.

91. Facility of food and water – In transport of pigs by rail or road, sufficient food and fodder shall be carried to last during the journey and watering facility shall be provided at regular intervals.

92. Padding of floor during travel – In transport of pigs by rail or road, material for padding, such as straw, shall be placed on the floor to avoid injury if an animal lies down, and this shall be not less than 5 cm thick.

93. Ban on fettering – In transport of pigs by rail or road, the animals shall not be fettered unless there is a risk of their jumping out and their legs shall not be tied down.

94.Space requirement during rail travel – In transport of pigs by rail

(a) no railway wagon shall accommodate more than the number of pigs as specified in the Table below:

TABLE

(b) adequate ventilation shall be provided in every wagon and the upper door of one side of wagon shall be kept open and properly fixed and the upper door of the wagon shall have wire gauge closely welded mesh arrangements to prevent burning cinders from the engines entering the wagon and leading to fire breakout.

95. Space requirement during road travel – In transport of pigs by road –

(a) goods vehicles of capacity of 5 or 4.5 tons, which are generally used for transportation of animals, shall car not more than twenty pigs.

(b) in the case of large goods vehicles and containers, Explanation: For the purpose of this rule the certificate partition shall be provided at every two or three metres shall be issued in such form as may be specified for this across the width to prevent the crowding and trapping purpose by the Central Government of pigs

(c) in the case of pigs under six weeks of age, separate panels shall be provided.

Chapter IX

MISCELLANEOUS

96. Issue of certificate before transportation –

(1)A valid certificate issued by an officer or any person or Animal Welfare Organisation duly recognised and authorised for this purpose by the Animal Welfare Board of India or the Central Government shall be procured by any person making transport of any animal before transportation of such animal verifying that all the relevant Central and State Acts, rules and orders pertaining to the said animals including the rules relating to transport of such animals have been duly complied with and that the animal is not being transported for any purpose contrary to the provision of any law.

(2) In the absence of such certificate, the carrier shall refuse to accept the consignment for transport.

97. Cancellation of permit or authorisation for transport –

(1) In the event of contravention or noncompliance of any of the rules contained in these rule for transport of animals, if it is pointed out in writing by any officer or persons or Animal Welfare Organisations authorised for this purpose by the Animal Welfare Board of India or the Central Government, then, any permit or authorisation issued for such transport shall be immediately cancelled by the concerned authority and it shall be the duty of the police to stop the further transport even from the intermediary station and proceed against the said offenders and deal with the animal in accordance with law.

(2) The custody of the animals immediately after unloading from the rail wagons, truck or any other vehicle shall be given to the authorised Animal Welfare Organisation if available, till the competent authority or the magistrate having jurisdiction decides about their care and upkeep.

98. General conditions of transport –

(1) Animals to be transported shall be healthy and in good condition and such animals shall be examined by a veterinary doctor for freedom from infectious diseases and their fitness to undertake the journey; provided that the nature and duration of the proposed journey shall be taken into account while deciding upon the degree of fitness.

(2) An animal which is unfit for transport shall not be transported and the animals who are new born, diseased, blind emaciated, lame, fatigued or having given birth during the preceding seventy-two hours or likely to give birth during transport shall not be transported.

(3) Pregnant and very young animals shall not be mixed with other animals during transport.

(4) Different classes of animals shall be kept separately during transport.

(5) Diseased animals, whenever transported for treatment, shall not be mixed with other animals

(6) Troublesome animals shall be given tranquilisers before loading during transport.

(7) Animals shall be transported in their on-farm social groups (established atleast one week prior to journey).

3. In the said rules, after Schedule J, the following Schedule shall be inserted. namely:

SCHEDULE K

(see rule 87 (3) Proforma for certificate of fitness to travel Pigs

(This certificate should be completed and signed by a Veterinary doctor)

Date and time of examination_________________________________________________

Species of Animals__________________________________________________________

Number of Animals_________________________________________________________

Sex__________________________________Age_________________________________

I hereby certify that I have read Rules 86 to 95 in Chapter VIII of the Transport of Animal Rules, 1978

1.That, at the request of (consignor) 12 hours before their departure I examined the above mentioned animals not more than

2.That each appeared to be in a fit condition to travel by rail/road/sea and is not showing any signs of any infectious or contagious or parasitic disease(s) and that it has been vaccinated against any infectious or contagious disease(s)

3.That the animals were adequately fed and watered for the purpose of the journey.

4.That the animals have been vaccinated.

(a)Type of vaccine(s)

(b)Date of vaccination

Date _________

Signed___________________________

Address__________________________

__________________________

Qualification_______________________

Note: The principal rules were published in Gazette of India vide Government of India Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (Department of Agriculture), Krishi Bhavan, New Delhi number 18-6/70 LDI dated 23.3.1978

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