Cage the Abusers

In battery cages, egg-laying hens are suffocated, debeaked and injected with antibiotics. They also suffer from various diseases. Their only hope lies with the Delhi High Court, which will be hearing a case to frame rules to humanise their living conditions

- Ambika Nijjar

THE EGG-laying hen is the most abused animal in India. From birth to death, these animals live in cages smaller than an A-4 size piece of paper. They don’t get to spread their wings, perch or exhibit any form of natural behaviour. Their lives are spent in these “battery cages”. These cages give the birds no room to move and they are stacked on top of one another. This heart-wrenching cruelty formed the basis of four public interest petitions, which were filed in the High Courts of Mumbai, Allahabad, Chandigarh and Telangana in 2014-15. These petitions sought the notification of Egg-Laying Hens Rules, 2012—formulated by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI)—and called for a prohibition on the sale of eggs from “factory farms” which use these battery cages.

The cause of egg-laying hens found its way to the Supreme Court in July 2016 by way of a transfer petition, filed by the AWBI, seeking the hearing of these petitions by one forum. Moved by the shocking cruelty, the Supreme Court, on August 5, granted the transfer of the case to the Delhi High Court to “expedite the process of framing of the rules”. The case will be heard in December. This order marked the first step in India’s journey to secure the most basic protection to egg laying hens. The implementation of the rules will streamline litigation, and hopefully, accelerate the time taken to redress the wrongs that have been committed unchecked since time immemorial by the poultry industry.

Unchecked cruelty