HC says animals shouldn’t be named after God, urges Bengal govt to change names of lioness ‘Sita’ and lion ‘Akbar’

HC says animals shouldn’t be named after God, urges Bengal govt to change names of lioness ‘Sita’ and lion ‘Akbar’

Subject: Environment

Section: Environmental Laws

Context:

• The Jalpaiguri Circuit Bench of the Calcutta High Court has advised the West Bengal government to consider renaming a lioness and lion named ‘Sita’ and ‘Akbar’ at the Siliguri zoo, as it is inappropriate to name animals after revered figures such as gods, mythological heroes, freedom fighters, or Nobel laureates.

More in the news:

• The court has allowed the petitioners to reclassify their writ petition as a public interest litigation (PIL), emphasizing the need to respect religious sentiments and the secular nature of the state.
• The state counsel mentioned that the naming occurred in Tripura, with the responsibility lying with the Tripura Zoo authorities.
• The West Bengal Forest Department clarified that the lion and lioness, named ‘Ram‘ and ‘Sita’ in official records, were transferred from Tripura’s Sepahijala Zoo to Siliguri zoo as part of an animal exchange program.

Guidelines for exchange or transfer of animals between Zoos:

• The Zoo owners and Zoo managers have to respond to the need for conservation of various species of wild animals and contribute to it by way of donating and loaning or giving in exchange of some other species, the single/ unpaired and surplus animals of endangered species for the conservation programmes identified by the Central Zoo Authority.
• Central Zoo Authority will take every care that all the Zoos are benefited from the exchange programme.

Rules:

• The Member Secretary may issue approval of Central Zoo Authority for exchange proposal involving the wild animal species/individuals not part of the approved Coordinated Conservation Breeding Programme, if satisfying the guidelines.
• All the exchange proposals of wild animal species/ individuals between Indian Zoos forming part of approved Coordinated Conservation Breeding Programme will be placed in the Technical Committee for approval.
• All the exchange proposals between Indian and Foreign Zoos will be decided by the Central Zoo Authority as per recommendations made by the Technical Committee.
• In urgent cases and where the meeting of the Technical Committee or/and Central Zoo Authority is not likely to be held immediately, the Member Secretary may issue the approval of Central Zoo Authority for such exchange proposals which satisfy the guidelines with the approval of the Chairman, Technical Committee and/or Chairman, Central Zoo Authority respectively as the case may be. However, ex-post-facto approval will be taken from Technical Committee and/or the Central Zoo Authority (as the case may be) will be taken for all such proposals in the next Meeting.
• Schedule 3 (9) of Rule 10 under Recognition of Zoo Rules, 2009 (Amendment) Rules, 2013 which reads as “Any decision of the Central Zoo Authority about any animal being sent to a particular Zoo for augmenting the number of founder animals for the conservation breeding programme of the species shall be binding on the concerned Zoo.” will any means be implemented once issued by the Central Zoo Authority.

Places in news:

1. Sepahijala Zoo– Tripura
2. Siliguri Zoo– West Bengal

Source: IE