People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), India, has called on the neighboring country’s Prime Minister, KP Sharma Oli, to take decisive action to halt mass slaughter of animals during the upcoming ‘Gadhimai’ Festival from December 7 to 9, 2024.
Celebrated every five years, this year’s edition will take place at the Gadhimai Temple in Bara District. The festival, famous for animal sacrifice, is one of the largest and most controversial slaughter events. It ranks as one of the world’s largest animal sacrifice festivals, drawing thousands of devotees from Nepal, India, and beyond. The sacrificial animals include water buffalo, pigs, goats and birds.
In letters to Oli and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Peta India highlighted the grave risks posed by the festival to public health, animal welfare, and the environment.
Besides the slaughter, the rights group also expressed concerns over transportation and holding the animals in unhygienic conditions, warning of the potential for another pandemic.
“Mass animal sacrifice must be stopped, not only for the animals but for our own safety. The intermingling of bodily fluids in such settings creates an ideal environment for zoonotic diseases to emerge,” Kiran Ahuja, Manager of Vegan Projects, Peta India said.
Peta India drew parallels with the Covid-19 pandemic, which has claimed over 7 million lives globally, and urged Nepal to learn from the outbreak, which is believed to have originated in a live animal market.
The PETA letter also highlighted the ongoing spread of the H5N1 bird flu, a virus with a 60 per cent mortality rate in humans, as an example of the risks posed by such events. Scientific studies cited by PETA India outline the unsanitary conditions at the festival, including the absence of slaughter slabs, shade, water, or hygienic standards.
The practices, which involve the mass decapitation of animals, expose butchers, temple workers, and attendees to pathogens, potentially triggering outbreaks of zoonotic diseases such as avian influenza, anthrax, and leptospirosis, the letter pointed out.
Peta India further emphasized that ending the animal sacrifices would not only protect public health but also improve Nepal’s global standing and attract more ethical tourism. The festival has faced mounting international criticism for its inhumane practices and potential health implications. Thousands of buffalo are to be slaughtered in the festival despite efforts to end or ban the tradition.
Worshippers kill thousands of buffalo in what is reputed to be the world’s biggest animal sacrifice, held every five years in a remote corner of Nepal, despite efforts to end the bloodshed.
It starts in the early hours amid tight security, with the ceremonial slaughter of a goat, rat, chicken, pig and a pigeon. Nearabout 200 butchers with sharpened swords and knives walk into a walled arena bigger than a football field, holding several thousand buffalo, as excited pilgrims climb trees to catch a glimpse.
Thousands of worshippers from Nepal and neighboring India spend days sleeping out in the open and offering prayers ahead of the event in Bariyarpur village, close to the Indian border.
An estimated 200,000 animals ranging from goats to rats were butchered during 2014 fest. Many are hopeful that the centuries-old tradition would end after the temple authorities announced a ban in 2015 and Nepal’s supreme court directed the government to discourage the bloodshed a year later.
Animal rights activists say government agencies and temple committees have failed to implement these rulings.
Indian border authorities and volunteers have in recent days seized scores of animals being brought across the frontier by unlicensed traders and pilgrims, but this has failed to stop the flow.
According to legend, the first sacrifices in Bariyarpur were conducted several centuries ago when the Goddess Gadhimai appeared to a prisoner in a dream and asked him to establish a temple to her.
Now again, Devotees are urged to spare animals ahead of Gadhimai festival. Animal protection organizations Humane Society International (HIS)/India and People For Animals, along with Acharya Prashant have encouraged devotees not to transport animals illegally across Indo-Nepal border.
In a press conference held in Patna, spiritual teacher and author Acharya Prashant joined animal protection organizations Humane Society International/India and People For Animals, to urge devotees to refrain from sacrificing animals during the Gadhimai festival. The animal sacrifice event will take place between December 7th to 9th.
Held every five years in the Bariyarpur district of Nepal, Gadhimai is the world’s largest animal sacrifice event, where thousands of animals—including buffalo, goats, pigs, pigeons and chickens—are beheaded as sacrifice to appease the goddess Gadhimai. A significant proportion of the animals killed at the festival are illegally transported into Nepal from India, with a large percentage coming from the state of Bihar.
Prior to the press conference, representatives of both organizations along with Acharya Prashant met the chief secretary of Bihar to request a directive to police and law enforcement officials ensuring no illegal transport of animals and a statement urging devotees to refrain from animal sacrifice. Additionally, former Member of Parliament, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Acharya, HSI/India and PFA wrote to the Government of Bihar urging preventive action.
The organizations’ representatives quoted orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 881/2014 titled Gauri Maulekhi v. Union of India & Ors which acknowledged the smuggling of animals across the Indo-Nepal border and directed authorities to ensure that no live animals are exported out of India into Nepal, except under licence mandated by the Foreign Trade Act 1992.
During the press conference, Acharya Prashant joined the animal welfare groups in encouraging devotees to celebrate the festival with compassion and to honor traditions without harming animals. “Devotion should inspire compassion, not cruelty. Slaughtering animals in the name of the divine diminishes the spirit of worship. Let us honor the Goddess by upholding the sanctity of all life during Gadhimai,” he said.
Maneka Gandhi, chairperson of People For Animals, added: “Protecting animals is not just about preventing suffering, it’s about fostering a society that values compassion and respect for all living beings. We must challenge outdated traditions and create new ways to celebrate festivals that honor life and not take it away.”
To assist in the prevention of illegal border transportation of animals for mass sacrifice, teams from HSI/India and PFA will deploy at strategic border checkpoints to help the border police who will inspect vehicles crossing the border, register cases and confiscate animals.
Alokparna Sengupta, Humane Society International/India’s managing director said: “Just as we did in 2014 and 2019, this year too we stand firmly against the cruelty of animal sacrifice, which is highly regressive and has no place in today’s society. We can honor traditions without the need for animal suffering, creating a better, kinder world for animals and people alike in the future.”
HSI/India and PFA have been working since 2014 to stop animal sacrifice at the site. Following their combined persistent efforts, the gruesome animal sacrifices at Gadhimai have considerably reduced from an estimated more than 500,000 animals killed in 2009 to around 200,000 animals in 2014 and tens of thousands of animals in 2019 including an estimated 3,500 buffaloes.
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