India - The Hindu news article: Primates languish at AIIMS 'cells'

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The Hindu Friday, April 20, 2001

 

Primates languish at AIIMS 'cells'

By Bindu Jacob

 

NEW DELHI: Imagine being caught and shoved into a

small dingy cage where the only movement possible

is to breathe standing, week after week, year after

year -- under-fed, constantly injected with drugs

....awaiting certain death.

 

Life comes to this torturous standstill for the

172-strong non- human primate population housed in

the country's premier All-India Institute of

Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after they were caught and

brought here.

 

Soon these voiceless creatures would be tested upon,

rendered useless and later their battered bodies

would be cleared out to make space for another set

of primates ready to be scarified at the altar of

biomedical research.

 

According to the report submitted to the Ministry of

Social Justice and Empowerment by the Committee for

the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiment

on Animals (CPCSEA) nominee at AIIMS, Ms. Camellia

Satija, the condition in which the non- human

primates (which form the backbone of bio-medical

research) are kept in the Institute is ``deplorable''.

 

``Monkeys kept in the Institute often go without

water and food for many hours at a stretch. A

regular practice here is to feed and provide water

to the monkeys on Saturday afternoon and then leave

them unattended till Monday morning with only a

`hurried' feed on Sunday noon,'' says Ms. Satija.

 

Conditions on weekdays are no better -- monkeys have

to make do with 100 gm of dry feed, 500 gm of fruits

and 25 gm of peanuts, way below their dietary

requirements.

 

The CPCSEA report also claims that the hygiene in

the non-human primate house is not up to the mark.

``Unhygienic conditions of the cage and the small

space the animals are kept in leaves them under

constant stress and vulnerable to diseases,'' Ms.

Satija says.

 

``While it is mandatory to clean the cage twice a

day, surprise inspection has proved that this is

seldom done. The monkeys are forced to stay in

filthy cages for months on end in rooms which are

not provided with adequate ventilation,'' she adds.

The strain of prolonged captivity is often displayed

in the form of aggressive and tense behaviour. Even

the cage is often broken and rusted which injures

the monkey exposing it to tetanus.

 

The Institute has also flouted the rule which bans

the use of stray animals for testing and is accused

of having picked up stray dogs and cats. The report

claims that AIIMS officials prevented the CPCSEA

nominee from reviewing experiments that use animals

for testing, which is mandatory under the Prevention

of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960.

 

``Many of the experiments that are done on animals

are strictly for academic purposes and students

often do minor changes in the original test. Most of

them conduct experiments without knowing

reconstructive surgery, resulting in the death or

permanent disability to the monkey. The Institute,

which should have at least five vetenary doctors,

has only two, and one of them has gone on study

leave,'' says Ms. Satija.

 

Meanwhile, the condition of the 12 monkeys in the

Institute which have outlived their ``utility'' is

no better. The hind legs of many are completely

shrunk due to skeletal deformity and osteoporosis.

 

The report on the state of non-human primates in the

premier medial institution, it is hoped, will make

humans realise that monkeys have to pay dearly to

ensure a healthy life to human beings -- supposedly,

the most intelligent and compassionate of beings.

 

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