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By:

Minal Sancheti

2 May 2026 at 12:26:53 pm

Funeral for animals

Mumbai: On the occasion of National Animal Rights Day, a funeral was held for all the voiceless creatures that humans have killed for selfish reasons. The act was a campaign and was a brainchild of Animal Climate and Health in collaboration with Our Planet Theirs Too. The purpose was to spread awareness about animal cruelty. The campaign took place at Carter Road Amphitheatre and so a crowd of both young and old supported the cause. Speaking about animal cruelty, recently the internet was...

Funeral for animals

Mumbai: On the occasion of National Animal Rights Day, a funeral was held for all the voiceless creatures that humans have killed for selfish reasons. The act was a campaign and was a brainchild of Animal Climate and Health in collaboration with Our Planet Theirs Too. The purpose was to spread awareness about animal cruelty. The campaign took place at Carter Road Amphitheatre and so a crowd of both young and old supported the cause. Speaking about animal cruelty, recently the internet was flooded with a viral video of a group of men at Mira Road taking a piglet to a locality where goats were brought for religious sacrifice. Aparjita Ashish, the founder and director of Animal Climate and Health said, “It is an act of cruelty to kill animals for religious sacrifice but to protest against this they were harassing a baby pig. The poor pig was screaming for his life. So how’s that right? If you want to protest, protest peacefully.” Ashish also comments on the Apex Judiciary’s decision of euthanising terminally ill dogs, “If the dog has a serious illness like rabies and is in a lot of pain, with a doctor’s permission and in a peaceful manner, they should be euthanised. The apex court also spoke about the ABC or animal birth control which if done with correct procedures, can help bring down issues related to the stray dogs. Many times the process is wrong so the animals become subject to cruelty.” She even added that the strays should not be displaced as that will leave them confused. This is also an act of ill treatment. The occasion saw a large number of gatherers. According to the campaigners, being vegan is not just for protecting animals but also for the climate. Ashish explained, “If you see the name of our NGO, it is Animal Climate and Health. So we also talk about the impact of consuming animal products on the environment.” She gives an example of how methane gas is produced because of the dairy animals and how the food and resources to breed animals are so much that it affects the environment. The supporters who participated in the campaign said they also noticed many health benefits of going vegan. Anil Nagpal, a senior citizen and volunteer with the organisation said, “For many years I was going through ill health. I tried every treatment but nothing really helped much. But then someone convinced me to go vegan and since that time my health has improved drastically. After this many people in my circles who used to eat animal products have given up.” When asked what his protein sources are, he said, “I eat lentils and legumes. Vegetables also contain protein.” Ashish claimed that humans have an ego that makes them think they are above animals.

Certificate Calculus

The Maharashtra government’s decision to launch a revised Occupancy Certificate (OC) amnesty scheme is, on its face, a long-overdue step toward bringing order to Mumbai’s urban landscape. Announced by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in the Legislative Assembly, the initiative aims to regularise nearly 20,000 buildings that have gone without OCs for years owing to minor deviations from their approved plans. More than 10 lakh residents - many of whom have paid double property tax, higher water charges and inflated sewerage fees - stand to benefit.


The absence of an OC can trap homeowners in a cycle of financial and legal vulnerability: resale values dip, access to home loans becomes difficult, and even routine redevelopment turns into a labyrinth of restrictions. Hospitals and schools caught in the category of ‘unauthorised constructions’ remain unable to expand or upgrade. A city that prides itself on being India’s financial nerve centre has long lived with regulatory gaps that would be unthinkable in most global business capitals.


The new scheme offers welcome clarity. Buildings constructed under the Development Control Regulations of the BMC, as well as those under MHADA, the SRA and other planning authorities, will be eligible. Proposals filed within the first six months will enjoy complete waiver of penalties. Those filed between six months and a year will face a 50 percent penalty. Societies applying for regularisation will receive a 50 percent concession on premiums, assessed on ready reckoner rates - a significant relief for structures struggling with compliance. In a notable innovation, even individual flat owners may apply independently for an OC, enabling residents in large societies to resolve long-standing issues without being held hostage by internal disagreements. The scheme is to be eventually be implemented in other municipal corporations across Maharashtra, creating a uniform regulatory framework.


All said, the timing of this announcement difficult to ignore. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation - Asia’s richest civic body and the political jewel of Maharashtra - is set for elections. For the ruling Mahayuti coalition led by Devendra Fadnavis, regaining control of the BMC is both a political necessity and a strategic ambition to wrest it from the Thackeray clan, which had controlled the corporation for over two decades and remains a formidable presence in Mumbai’s civic politics. Measures that promise direct relief to more than 2.5 lakh families are bound to have electoral implications.


Governments often push through popular reforms in the run-up to elections. In Mumbai, where urban planning has long been a patchwork of improvisations, stalled projects and regulatory contradictions, any serious attempt at regularisation is welcome. But it is also true that the city’s governance tends to quicken only when the BMC’s vast resources and its electoral significance are at stake.


The revised OC scheme may well resolve hundreds of disputes that have festered for years. But it also serves as a reminder that policy momentum in Mumbai occurs only when the political stakes are the highest.

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