Animals Eating Earth! Factory Farming and Right To Environment, Indian Perspective

1
ANIMALS EATING EARTH! FACTORY FARMING AND RIGHT TO

HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT, INDIAN PERSPECTIVE
In 2006, the FAO published, in a report which concluded that lives stock sector in the world
emerges as one of the top, three of the biggest contributors posing serious threat to the
environment at present and that by the time of 2050 the global meat and production market is
expected to double.1
Livestock systems occupy about 30 per cent of the planet's ice-free terrestrial surface area and
are a significant global asset with a value of at least $1.4 trillion. 2As per the report of ‘food and
cultural organization of the United Nations’ the farms breeding chickens, pigs, and cows for meat
and dairy products are responsible upto 14.5 % of the global green house emissions 3, which is
more than the carbon emissions from the transport sector. However the report also provided that
this emission can be reduced upto thirty percent if proper methods and regulations will be
adopted in the near future. However, in India there is no such effective law to provide for such
preventive measures. India is the fifth largest CHG(Green House Gases) emitter. 4 Human
Population in 2050 is estimated to be 9.7 billion5 and India would be having the biggest chunk of
it i.e. approximately 1.66 billion of people, which means that the food demands will rise
drastically and would result in the increased demand of livestock food. Therefore, if we don’t
ensure a better and effective legal framework to regulate it, this industry will have a significantly
drastic effect on our environment.
1 Team- Humane Society International, The Impact of Animal Agriculture on the Environment and Climate Change
in India: A Focus on Methane, hsi.org, ( Feb. 3, 2017, 11:08 p.m.) at pg.2 http://www.hsi.org/assets/pdfs/hsi-fa-
white-papers/india_climate_change_and_environment_fact_sheet.pdf
2Philip K. Thornton, Open Access Livestock production: recent trends, future prospects , rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org,
( Feb. 4, 2017, 10:07 p.m.), http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org
3 Emma Bryce, Do the UN's new numbers for livestock emissions kill the argument for vegetarianism?
, theguardian.com, ( Feb. 6, 2017, 07:07 p.m.), https://www.theguardian.com/environment/world-on-a-
plate/2013/sep/27/environment-food-ipcc-emissions-greenhouse-gas-livestock-vegetarian-meat
5World population projected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, un.org, ( Feb. 3, 2017, 11:054 p.m.)
http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/news/population/2015-report.html
2
The farm animal sector is the single largest anthropogenic user of land, contributing to many
environmental problems, including global warming and climate change.6Indian society not only
in the present but also in the past has largely been an agricultural society. While some farmer’s
livelihood depended upon crops, many had dependence upon animal husbandry also. Over the
centuries livestock market has also established itself as a noticeable economy around the world
as well in India.
Human beings have been farming with livestock for centuries; these farms are suppliers of meat,
dairy products and leather, among others. Farmers typically farm with cattle, pigs, sheep, poultry
or a combination of the aforementioned.7There are three types of livestock farming mainly,
firstly, the livestock market based on grazing where the animals roam in grasslands and graze
from them. Second type is the mixed farming where the livestock and the crop farming activities
are integrated and animals eat generally the leftover of the crops or are used for cultivation of the
crops. Third method is industrialized system of farming, where the entire is system from the
society; animals are produced and kept in specific confined farms, to ensure optimum
production, at a large scale. It is the third the method which poses the greatest threat to the
environment.
The meat products derived out of animal farms are produced at a very high quantity. This makes
it inexpensive; however on the other side of it, it is the environment that has to pay. Most of the
environmental concerns that come out of this industrialized animal farming are due to the fact of
them being so immensely overcrowded, as it in turn results in large number of pollutants,
harmful substances and gases being emitted.
The legal framework for regulation and controlling the factory farming sector is next to
negligible in India, there is no separate set of rules and regulations or legislation for it, despite
the fact that its need can be clearly inferred from the Indian Constitution. The prevention of
cruelty to animals (Slaughter House) rules, 2001, has also failed in its implementation in India.
6Gowri Koneswaran, Danielle Nierenberg, Global Farm Animal Production and Global Warming: Impacting and
Mitigating Climate Change , 116(5) Environmental health perspectives 578, 581, (2008) also available at,
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2367646/
7 REPORT- Ruché Grobler, Regulating the environmental impacts of factory farming in South Africa: Legal
perspectives, Pg. 1 available at https:///bitstream/handle/10394/9053/Grobler_R.pdf?sequence=1
3
This failure has also contributed in the failure of prevention of environmental degradation
through the overall factory farming sector in India.
1. RIGHT TO ENVIRONMENT AS A HUMAN RIGHT:

The Advocates of environmental human rights, claim that the right of the individuals for the
protection of their rights of clean drinking water, air, or for the protection of biodiversity or to
participate in environmental decisions are appropriately considered to be as “human rights”.
They consider such human rights for a healthy environment to be at par with the other important
human rights for individuals like freedom for speech, non-discrimination, or safety from physical
brutality because the right to healthy environment is necessary for the society’s existence.8
Justice Christopher Weeramantry of the International Court of Justice, in his concurring opinion
in Gabcikovo-Nagymaros (1997) involving a dam on the Danube River, wrote, “The protection
of the environment is……..a vital part of contemporary human rights doctrine, for it is the sine
qua non for numerous human rights such as the right to health and the right to life itself……
Damage to the environment can impair and undermine all human rights spoken of in the
Universal Declaration and other human rights instruments.”9 The final report of Draft principles
of human rights and the environment of 1994, the UNEP’s Expert seminar on human rights and
the environment of 2002, the United Nation’s Conference on the human environment in 1972
and the UN’s Conference on Environment and development in 1992, do include right to a healthy
environment as a human right.
2. FACTORY FARMING
India is the world’s third largest egg producer – a status achieved through the proliferation of
"factory farms" where intensive farming methods seek to maximise production of animal-derived
products, at the cost of the animals' well-being.10 India is also the biggest beef exporter in the
8 David P. Forsythe Encylopedia of Human Rights Vol. II at 139 (2nd ed. 2009)
9David P. Forsythe Encylopedia of Human Rights Vol. II at 140 (2nd ed. 2009)
10N.G. Jayasimha, Indias cruelty towards chickens is unbearably horrifying poultry farming, dailyo.in, , ( Feb. 5,
2017, 08:15 p.m.), http://www.dailyo.in/politics/indias-cruelty-towards-chickens-is-unbearably-horrifying-poultry-
farming/story/1/13270.html
4
world11India is the world’s largest milk producer, with 14.5 percent of global production,
followed by the United States of America, China, Pakistan and Brazil.12
One of the objectives of switching from traditional agricultural llivestock farms to factory farms
is the cost efficiency of these farms, but if not managed rightly factory farming can be and is
proving to be very costly for the environment.
“Although the terms “factory farm,” “animal feeding operation (AFO),” and “concentrated
animal feeding operation (CAFO)” are often used interchangeably, “factory farm” is a general
term that refers to industrial animal production facilities, while “AFO” and “CAFO” have precise
legal definitions. An AFO is a facility in which crops and vegetation are not sustained during the
normal growing season, and land animals are confined for 45 days or more within a 12-month
period. As described by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “AFOs congregate
animals, feed, manure and urine, dead animals, and production operations on a small land area.”
The EPA estimates there are approximately 450,000 AFOs in the United States. An AFO may be
designated as a CAFO in one of three ways: 1) by meeting the definitional requirements for a
“large” CAFO; 2) by meeting the definitional requirements for a “medium” CAFO and 3)
through special designation by the relevant EPA Regional Administrator or State Director upon
determining “that it is a significant contributor of pollutants to waters of the United States.” The
EPA estimates there are approximately 18,800 CAFOs in the United States.”13
In India, the per capita egg consumption increased upto two times, while milk and meat
consumption increased by thirty eight and sixty nine percent, between 1980 and 2005. 14
Industrial farm animal production (IFAP) units, are used were thousands or tens of thousands of
animals are concentrated or confined along with their waste.
11 TCA Sharad RAghavan, India top in exporting beef, thehindu.com, ( Feb. 5, 2017, 09:34 p.m.),
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-on-top-in-exporting-beef/article7519487.ece
12Milk production, fao.org, ( Feb. 6, 2017, 04:59 p.m.), http://www.fao.org/agriculture/dairy-gateway/milk-

production/en/#.WK_y49J97IU
13 Team- Humane Society International, The Impact of Industrialized Animal Agriculture on the Environment,
hsi.org, ( Feb. 7, 2017, 08:08 p.m.) at pg.2 http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/farm/hsus-the-impact-of-
industrialized-animal-agriculture-on-the-environment.pdf
5
“A spokesperson for the Poultry Federation of India reportedly stated that India‘s broiler chicken
industry was comparable to that of developed countries,28 which suggests that broiler chickens
in India experience the crowded confinement,29 and stressful handling30 common in the U.S.
chicken industry.”15
3. FACTORY FARMING AND ITS IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT:
There are numerous harmful effects of factory farming on the environment for e.g. on water, air,
soil etc. as well as many harmful health effects therefore, factory farming effects the
environment not only through some specific channel(e.g. only air or water pollution) but from
almost all channels. The numerous environmental pollution that factory farming causes are
ground water pollution, surface water pollution, air pollution, global warming, inefficient use of
resources and land16, harmful effects on wildlife or biodiversity near the factory farming
centers17, antibiotic and hormone contamination to the animals18, deforestation19, soil erosion,
etc.Some of the biggest of these harmful environmental or health impacts discussed in detail are
as follows:
3.1. AIR POLLUTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE OR GLOBAL

WARMING :
Factory farming is a substantial source of many harmful gases, like carbon dioxide, methane,
ammonia, nitric oxide, nitrous oxide. These gases are largely associated with the problems of air,
pollution, global warming, and ozone depletion, soil acidification.20
15 Ibid.
16 Elizabeth Bennett, Animal Agriculture Laws on the Chopping Block: Comparing United States and Brazil, Vol.
31(2) Pace Environmental L. R. 531, 537,(2014)
31(2) Pace Environmental L. R. 531, 537 & 538,(2014)
19 Team- Humane Society International, The Impact of Animal Agriculture on Global Warming and Climate Change
, hsi.org, ( Feb. 8, 2017, 07:56 p.m.) at pg.6 http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/farm/hsus-the-impact-of-
animal-agriculture-on-global-warming-and-climate-change.pdf
6
The organic break of carbon and nitrogen compounds of manure contributes to air pollution.
During its decomposition it puts the nearby workers or residents at the risk of developing acute
and chronic diseases.21 Some studies have also found that the nearby schools and children are
also harmed by this, as they take (20-50) % more air than adults.22
“Farm workers can develop acute and chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive airways disease,
and interstitial lung disease. Repeated exposure to CAFO emissions can increase the likelihood
of respiratory diseases. Occupational asthma, acute and chronic bronchitis, and organic dust toxic
syndrome can be as high as 30% in factory farm workers.” 23 It has been reported that the
ammonia can travel through water ways as long as 50 miles away while hundreds of miles
through the air.”24 “Worldwide, livestock are likely to be the greatest anthropogenic contribution
to methane emissions, which, as a potent greenhouse gas, contributes to the risk of global
warming and beef cattle contribute at least half of livestock-related methane emissions.”25
Global warming is the evidently the biggest threat, that is present to the planet, at present. United
Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stated that “the danger posed by war to all of
humanity—and to our planet—is at least matched by the climate crisis and global warming.”26
Global Warming refers to the average increase of the temperature of the earth which in turn
results in long term changes in natural phenomenon’s like temperature, melting of glaciers, and
overall temperature of the earth. The average global temperature started increasing during the
21Team- Humane Society International, The Impact of Industrialized Animal Agriculture on the Environment,
22 REPORT- Carrie Hribar , Understanding Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations and Their Impact on
Communities, Pg. 5 also available at https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/docs/understanding_cafos_nalboh.pdf
23 Ibid. at 7
7
industrial revolution in the mid 1700’s, and has been ever increasing, as the decades of 1980’s,
1990’s and 2000’s have been warmer than the last.27
Livestock is responsible for upto14.5% of the total CHG production, while carbon dioxide is
considered the prominent source of global warming28, methane is considered to be the one of the
strongest ‘green house gases’ because the heat that methane traps is twenty times more effective
than carbon dioxide over period of 100 years. In U.S.A., the rising emission of methane and
nitrous oxide, two of most potent GHG gases, have been linked to the animal
agricultureindustry.29 “Many CAFOs store their excess manure in lagoons or pits, where they
break down anaerobic ally (in the absence of oxygen), which exacerbates methane production.”30
The source of GHG’s(Green Houses Gases) is also the manure produced from such
CAFO’s(Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) which is eventually applied to the land, as it
results in the volatilization of ammonia when the manure is applied to the land while another
way is the air pollution through the vitalization system of such CAFO’s.
“Ruminant livestock, such ascattle, produce approximately eighty million metric tons ofmethane
per year globally. This accounts for roughly twentyeightpercent of the total global methane
emitted as a result ofhuman-related activities. Animal manure worldwide is responsible for upto
twenty percent of methane emission”31 Ruminant livestock contribute to methane production due
to their digestive system which is made to digest tough grains or plants and during this process
methane is produced.32Enteric fermentation is the process which takes place during their
27 Team- Humane Society International, The Impact of Animal Agriculture on Global Warming and Climate
Change , hsi.org, ( Feb. 8, 2017, 07:56 p.m.) at pg.1 http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/farm/hsus-the-
impact-of-animal-agriculture-on-global-warming-and-climate-change.pdf
Ibid. at 7
31(2) Pace Environmental L. R. 531, 534,(2014)
8
digestion; it is responsible for 63 % of India’s agricultural emissions, 12% of the total emissions
and 43% of India’s methane emissions while manure is responsible for 5% of the GHG’s. 33 There
is increasing preference in India for high yield animas and it registered a 9 % increase in the
population of buffalos during 1997-2003.34
“The farm animal sector also is responsible for the majority of the world‘s human-induced
nitrous oxide emissions. Nitrous oxide emissions from animal agriculture originate primarily
from manure, but also from fertilizer for feed crops, and contribute approximately 31% of animal
agriculture‘s GHG emissions.”35 Nitrous oxide has 300 times more dangerous environmental
effect then Carbon dioxide.
In India approx ten percent of the coarse grain and fifty percent of all corn goes for the animal
feed.
3.2. WATER POLLUTION
Water pollution concerns arising from factory farming include ground water as well as water
pollution from it. “This can be caused by over application of manure to available land, manure
storage tanks and lagoons overflowing or leaking, and pollutants that had been released into the
air re-depositing into waterways.”36
The groundwater contamination through CAFO’s can be because of the land application of the
manure, thorough breaks or leakage in the contamination or storage units or through leaching
from manure improperly spread on the land.37When groundwater is contaminated by pathogenic
34 Ibid.
35 Ibid. at
9
organisms, a serious threat to drinking water can occur.38To monitor ground water contamination
is much difficult than monitoring surface water contaminating. Ground water contamination also
might contribute in surface water contamination. “When manure is overapplied to land, it
deposits excess nutrients that can end up in waterways.”39 The main problem with this has been
that the excess of nutrients in the manure through poultry operation, as it produces 52% and 64%
excess of phosphorous and nitrogen. Phosphorous and nitrogen in waterways can cause
eutrophication, in which an increase in nutrients depletes the water of oxygen, threatening
aquatic life.40“A customary manure storage system used in pig and dairy factory farms is the
manure lagoon. In a lagoon system, liquefied manure is stored in an outdoor, open-air pit that can
emit pollutants into the air, including methane, a gas implicated in climate change. The stored
liquid manure is ultimately sprayed onto fields. Lagoons decrease the amount of nutrients that
must be applied to land, in part because much of the nitrogen content is volatilized into ammonia
emissions from the lagoon itself. These ammonia emissions can contribute to increased
concentrations of nitrogen (nitrate) in precipitation. Manure lagoons pose the additional risk of
spillage or leakage, poisoning surface or groundwater. In one incident, more than 20 million
gallons of waste spilled from a manure lagoon on a pig factory farm into a nearby river in North
Carolina, causing a massive fish kill. In 2005, a manure lagoon at an upstate New York dairy
farm burst, polluting the nearby Black River with millions of gallons of manure and killing more
than 375,000 fish.”41
The surface water pollution can be caused by discharges from the surface or others like caused
by storms, floods causing storage lagoons to overfill and running into the nearby bodies of water
and the drainage system through these CAFO’s can also lead to pollution of surface water.42
4. LEGAL FRAME WORK OR REGULATIONS OF CAFOs IN INDIA:
38 Ibid.
40Ibid.
41 Ibid.
10
The biggest problem with the factory farming sector in India is not that it exist but that we don’t
have any measures any regulations to regulate it and ensure that some preventive environmental
effects.
3.1. WANT OF LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO REGULATE C.A.F.O.s IN

INDIA:
Unlike America and other, westerns countries, in India we are yet to have a law which will
directly regulate the environmental threats arising out of factory farming. Constitutional
framework relating to environment conservation, Polluters pay principle, precautionary principle,
preventive principle, numerous water and air prevention Acts, do provide for an idea and essence
of preservation of environment but cannot be an effective, preventive and precautionary with an
specific field of environment pollution that coming from the factory farming in India, even we
can say that they are almost negligible. Also the immense portion of the pollution and climatic
change that comes out of this industry, calls for a separate, comprehensive and effective
legislation to regulate and control this industry. Recently the Central government notified about
the draft of rules that are proposed to be made for animals in livestock markets and the animals
which are seized in cruelty cases43, however these proposed draft rules(which may or may not
come in action) give no help to the cause of preventing and regulating the environmental
pollution caused by the CAFO’s industry, as these proposed rules concern themselves only with
prevention of immense cruelty these animals have to face in the livestock markets regularly. 44
Immediate air, water, soil etc., preventive measures are required.
3.2. CONSTITUTIONAL ASPECT:
There are many constitutional provisions in the Indian constitution from which the need and
essence of having regulation and legal framework for CAFOs in India can be inferred. They are
as follows:
43Team-Humane Society International, Government notifies draft rules for regulating livestock markets and care
of animals seized in cruelty cases , hsi.org, ( Feb. 9, 2017, 09:57 p.m.)
http://www.hsi.org/world/india/news/news/2017/01/government-to-notify-livestock-case-property-animals-
regulation-rules-012017.html?referrer=http://www.hsi.org/world/india/news/news/2017/01/government-to-notify-
livestock-case-property-animals-regulation-rules-012017.html
44Ibid.
11
3.2.1. RIGHT TO LIFE, HEALTH AND D.P.S.P.:
The Constitution of India provides for right to live to with personal liberty to every person
under Article 21 of it. Through judicial activism, many rights which are essential for a person
to live with personal liberty or to live have been interpreted to be present in the same article.
The Supreme Court in Occupational Health and Safety Association v. Union of India,held
that Right to health i.e. right to live in a clean, hygienic and safe environment is a right
flowing from Article 21. Further the Supreme Court held that right to health under article 21,
derives its essence from the Directive Principles of the state policy, particularly clause (e)
and (f) of article 39, 41 and 42. It held that under these Articles the protection of health of
workers and providing them with just and humane conditions of work were the requirements
under these afore mentioned articles. Every state has the obligation and duty to provide at
minimum condition ensuring human dignity where workers are engaged in any of the
dangerous activities.45
Similarly, one has to question that with it been already clear that how dangerous the
conditions of working in the CAFO’s are for the workers there and the nearby residents, it is
a gross violation of their one of the most important human rights i.e. Right to Life and Right
to Health. However, still even after having such guidelines as enumerated in the
aforementioned case by the Supreme Court, there is no competent law, which would provide
for preventative and cautionary methods and regulation at the CAFOs in India to ensure
safety of the health and a humane working environment for the workers working there.
3.2.2. FUNDAMENTAL DUTY:
Article 51(A) (g)46 of the Constitution of India rest an duty on every citizen of India to
conserve the environment, including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have
compassion towards all living creatures. The factory farming industry in the world and in
India is a threat, directly or indirectly, to every single thing mentioned in this clause, actively
due to the negative environmental effects it has and passively also due not having proper set
of regulations for such sector for preventive measures.
45 J.N. Pandey, Constitutional Law of India, 273 (53 rd Edi. 2016)

46The Constitution of India, Article 51A, Cl.(g)
12
3.2.3. RIGHT TO GET POLLUTION FREE, AIR AND WATER:
This right also flows from the Right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Indian
Constitution. In Subash Kumar v. State of Bihar, the Supreme Court held that the enjoyment
of pollution free, air and water is included within the ‘right to life’ under article 21 of the
Indian Constitution.47 While in Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P., the
Supreme Court ordered the closure of certain categories of lime stone- quarries as a large
scale pollution was caused by lime stone operations, adversely affecting the safety and health
of the people living in the area. Similarly, going by such dictums we must see that similar
threat is posed by the CAFO’s to the people around them and to nation.48
To solve this problem we need a proper legislation and its effective implementation so that
the rise of these CAFOs in the country can be checked and we be ensured that they are only
that much which can be a part of sustainable development. Also we need such legislations or
regulation regarding CAFO’s in the country as to ensure that the right to health, life,
pollution free and water are not violated and therefore proper provisions are present and
followed as to ensure the preventive measures for the workers, working in such CAFO’s and
also the people residing nearby it.
3.3. FAILURE OF THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMAL

(SLAUGHTER HOUSE) RULES, 2001:
The ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animal(Slaughter House) Rules2001, are the rules made for the
regulation of slaughter houses in India. These rules derived there essence from the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which is the central core legislation in India to prevent cruelty to
animals in India. Therefore these rules also have to main object of preventing all kinds of
unnecessary pain and suffering that an animal may have to go through in the slaughter houses
before and during slaughter, thus this Act provides for measures for ensuring that minimum pain
should happen to the animal while being in slaughter.
47 J.N. Pandey, Constitutional Law of India, 279 (53 rd Edi. 2016)

48Ibid.
13
However, it is this Act, which also provides for the licensing 49 of any slaughter house in the
country and thus does not license any slaughter house if it does not fulfill the various criteria
provided within it. It also provides that an animal cannot be slaughtered anywhere elseub a
municipal area other than a licensed or recognized slaughter house. Therefore for legally
establishing and running any slaughter house in a municipal area (i.e. any place where more than
10 animals are slaughtered per day50) it is necessary that the slaughter house be recognized or
licensed as per the provisions of this Act.
The problem that we face today is that the implementation of this Act has failed miserably and
the executive agencies of the country do not pay much importance or attention to the efficient
working of this Act. To quote from a 2014 order of the SC, “We notice that there is no periodic
supervision or inspection of the various slaughterhouses functioning in various parts of the
country. Action Taken Reports would indicate that, in many states, slaughterhouses are
functioning without any license and even the licensed slaughterhouses are not following the
various provisions as well as the guidelines issued by the MoEF, which we have already referred
to in our earlier orders.” 51
The result is that most of the slaughter houses in India are unlicensed thus or unauthorized and
therefore do not comply with the norms of the Act. There is a growing trend where the slaughter
houses don’t want to follow the legal norms and are getting unregistered. In 2014 as per an RTI
from the department of husbandry in India, it was reported that there are on1y 1,623 slaughter
houses were licensed or authorized. But a report from Central pollution Control Board reveals
that there are 3,600 slaughter houses present in the country52. Then the question is if there are
3.600 slaughter houses in India then how only 1,632 are registered or licensed. The evasion of
license and thus norms under the slaughter house rules, 2001, by the slaughter houses become
more inevitable when we compare this data from that of 1992, “As reported by the Ministry of
53
Food Processing, a total of 3,616 recognized slaughterhouses” existed at that time which is
almost the same number which has been stated to be present in the country but half of such are
49The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001, Section-3, (1960).
50 Bibek Debroy, Who has the license to kill?, Theindianexpress.com, (Feb. 25, 08:57
p.m.)http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/who-has-the-licence-to-kill-3006789/
51Idbi.
52Idbi.
53Idbi.
14
not licensed or authorized now. Even though, accepting that some of these slaughter houses may
have shut down but such large numbers indicate the illegality present. It is also reported that in
the informal sector approximately 40,000 unregistered or unlicensed slaughter houses exist in the
country.54
So, how exactly does this failure of these rules effect when we are talking about environmental
effect of CAFO’s. It will have an effect in future as well as is having in present. In future, even if
we are able to make some regulation or laws for the environmental protection in CAFOs, these
rules might become largely ineffective due to presence of illegal slaughter houses in the country.
As to evade the regulatory rules the CAFO’s may not get registered themselves and supply the
animals to the illegal slaughter houses like these which would be highly cost beneficial for them
and thus to an extend a large illegal market may emerge. At present, the relevance that it has is
that being in such a huge no. these illegal slaughter houses contribute a large portion of the meat
industry in the country. However, they are not as per the norms set for the slaughter houses and
are thus illegal and we should get rid of all the illegal slaughter houses from the country which
would in turn result in the drop of the livestock market, as harsh as this step may sound we must
understand that these are illegal units which are causing immense destruction to the environment
of the country, thus not only for the protection of environment but also for the ‘rule of law’ these
slaughter houses need to be shut, till they comply with the legal norms and requirements. Also
being not recognized by law, it is natural for these slaughter houses to take such cost beneficial
steps as may in turn maybe harmful for the environment as the same kind of pollution that
happens in the CAFO’s may also happen in these slaughter houses without proper preventive
measures, even though at a comparatively very low rate.
4. CONCLUSION:
The whole world is struggling with climate change, global warming and the ever increasing
deteriorated environment to live in, factory farming has come out to be as an sector which single
handedly holds a significantly large portion of these problems, still in most of the countries there
are no immediate and effective provisions for regulation of environmental threats coming out of
it. India, still has chance, this sector even though has been increasing at a high rate, still has not
become as big as the countries like U.S.A. or some other western countries where this has
54Idbi.
15
become an immense danger for the environment and if India does not tackle this problem at the
earliest, it may be too late for India as the damage that this sector could do in future would be
immense. As a developing nation, with the second largest population in the world which is bound
to be the largest population55, we are bound to protect and preserve our environment and
resources for sustainable development and for protection of our Right to Health, Life and
Environment. The Factory farming sector decorates all of our resources necessary for life, i.e.
ground water, surface water, air, global temperature, forestation, etc., therefore we must be at the
earliest to control and minimize its harm, but India is yet to show any seriousness towards such
grave issue for its existence. When the various constitutional provisions of the Indian
Constitution reflect the need to conserve our environment, provide a safe healthy environment
for people to live, rest duty upon the citizens and on the state through fundamental duties and
D.P.S.P., India has yet failed to acknowledge such problem and bring a comprehensive and
practical provisions for this sector to ensure sustainable development. With the law like the
Slaughter House Rules, which exist which could be slightly used to curb this problem, have
proven to fail in their implementation and there is grave ignorance of this law.
55 Andrew Katz, India will have the world’s largest population earlier than expected, U.N. says,
washingtonpost.com, (Feb. 25, 09:05) https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/07/30/india-
will-have-the-worlds-largest-population-earlier-than-expected-u-n-says/?utm_term=.ffc269622117

Animals Eating Earth! Factory Farming and Right To Environment, Indian Perspective

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Animals Eating Earth! Factory Farming and Right To Environment, Indian Perspective

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

1

ANIMALS EATING EARTH! FACTORY FARMING AND RIGHT TO

1. RIGHT TO ENVIRONMENT AS A HUMAN RIGHT:

12Milk production, fao.org, ( Feb. 6, 2017, 04:59 p.m.), http://www.fao.org/agriculture/dairy-gateway/milk-

3. FACTORY FARMING AND ITS IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT:

3.1. AIR POLLUTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE OR GLOBAL

3.2. WATER POLLUTION

4. LEGAL FRAME WORK OR REGULATIONS OF CAFOs IN INDIA:

3.1. WANT OF LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO REGULATE C.A.F.O.s IN

3.2. CONSTITUTIONAL ASPECT:

3.2.1. RIGHT TO LIFE, HEALTH AND D.P.S.P.:

3.2.2. FUNDAMENTAL DUTY:

45 J.N. Pandey, Constitutional Law of India, 273 (53 rd Edi. 2016)

3.2.3. RIGHT TO GET POLLUTION FREE, AIR AND WATER:

3.3. FAILURE OF THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMAL

47 J.N. Pandey, Constitutional Law of India, 279 (53 rd Edi. 2016)

You might also like