The growing focus on animal cruelty and wildlife protection has seen nearly 150 personnel in the Bengaluru police force receive a specialised workshop from PETA to boost their response capability when facing these cases. The sensitisation training provided hands-on guidance on the prevention of cruelty as well as response protocols.

Police Get Hands-On Training

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA India hosted the training session on animal cruelty on September 11 at the Inspector General of Police, Central Range Headquarters in Vasanth Nagar.

Police personnel, including the Station House Officers, inspectors, sub-inspectors, assistants sub-inspectors and head constables, from Bengaluru Rural participated in the programme which focused on actionable insights on the prevention of cruelty and response mechanisms, should any offence reports be filed. Participants were also introduced to key sections of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (including 2022 amendments) and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

Focus On FIR And Wildlife Cases

A significant portion of the session addressed FIR registration, investigation and coordination mechanisms with veterinary and other authorities.

Meet Ashar, PETA India’s Legal Advisor and Director of Cruelty Response said that the police have a critical role to ensure animals are protected from cruelty. His statements drew much attention to the role of law enforcement in ensuring animal-protection provisions are expressed in practice.

The workshop is said to be the first of a series of six districts covering Central Range: Bengaluru Rural, KGF, Kolar, Tumakuru, Chikkaballapur and Bengaluru South.

Animal Cruelty Cases Under Closer Watch

The initiative comes as official crime data records start to track animal cruelty cases more closely. According to the report, the National Crime Records Bureau has reported 9,039 cases of cruelty against animals and 10,312 arrests in 2024 — the first time such cases were tracked by the NCRB.

Business Fortune believes that the training may aid frontline officers in better understanding which laws apply to animal cruelty and wildlife offences, whilst boosting their coordination in investigations.

FAQs

  1. What was the PETA workshop about?

It focused on the prevention of animal cruelty and police enforcement of animal-protection wildlife laws.

  1. How many police personnel attended?

Nearly 150 Bengaluru Rural police personnel attended the workshop.

  1. Which laws were discussed?

The training covered the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, Wildlife (Protection) Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, amongst other relevant laws.

  1. Who conducted the training?

PETA India conducted the sensitisation workshop at the Central Range Headquarters in Vasanth Nagar.

  1. Will other districts receive similar training?

The workshop is described as the first of a series planned across six districts under the Central Range.