PETA India calls for withdrawal of Centre's draft rules on animal experimentation
Thiruvananthapuram: Animal rights organisation, PETA India has called for withdrawal of the Centre's proposed rules governing animal experimentation, claiming it could weaken existing animal protections.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) has said that the draft Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Control and Supervision of Experiment, Breeding and Trading of Laboratory Animals) Rules, 2026 could expose animals to greater suffering in labs.
The animal rights organisation claimed that the draft rules could permit the capture and use of animals protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, in experiments, subject to scientific justification and legal permissions.
Exemptions under the rules could also allow experimentation on stray dogs and cats under specified circumstances, it contended.
"Although the draft prohibits prolonged severe suffering that cannot be alleviated, it continues to accommodate experiments involving severe suffering," PETA India claimed.
It further claimed that the draft rules would result in weakening independent oversight and existing animal welfare protection.
"The draft would allow institutional ethics committees to approve experiments classified as mild or moderate on larger animals, including dogs, horses, pigs, and cattle, without prior approval from the central Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA)," it contended.
PETA India said that globally there is a shift towards non-animal research technologies and methods and therefore, the draft rules should focus on the "use of scientifically advanced non-animal approaches and animal-welfare protections, rather than weakening existing safeguards or creating new avenues for animal experimentation".
"PETA India calls for the withdrawal of the proposed rules and urges stronger regulations that protect wildlife and community animals, preserve independent oversight and existing safeguards, and prioritise scientifically sound non-animal methods," the animal rights organisation said.