Akshaye to campaign for PETA

A campaign seeking the complete ban on the use of bullocks to pull heavy oil carts spearheaded by animal rights organisation has drawn support from leading Bollywood actors.

Akshaye Khanna, Rahul Khanna, Raveena Tandon, Eesha Koppikar and Arjun Rampal are leading the plea campaign by animal welfare body PETA (People for Ethical Treatment of Animals) to the Controller of Rationing to discontinue the practice of using bullocks.

"Forcing these neglected and abused bullocks to pull oil tankers through city streets is outdated and cruel", said PETA India's Chief Functionary Anuradha Sawhney. "Along with our many celebrity friends and the oil companies themselves, we're calling on the controller of rationing to stop such blatant abuse at once," she said.

The bullocks are forced to stand long hours in extreme weather without adequate food or water, on the main street opposite the Sewree Railway Station. The injured and sick animals are forced to continue pulling heavy kerosene tankers and are often kept in miserable and unhygienic conditions tethered on heaps of dung urine and muck, officials of PETA said.

According to PETA, Justice C S Dharmadhikari (Retd. Judge of the Bombay High Court), the chairman of the Committee to Monitor Animal Welfare Laws in Maharashtra, has asked the controller about the course of action he plans to take to bring relief to the animals.

"Even oil companies have issued letters to the controller of rationing through the Maharashtra state level coordinator, R K Panda of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd., asking for bullock-pulled oil carts to be discontinued," PETA officials said.