Illegal meat shops & slaughterhouses near Delhi’s IGI linked to rising bird strikes—People for Animals

New Delhi: A new report by the New Delhi-based NGO People For Animals shows that there are at least 20 illegal meat shops and slaughterhouses around the New Delhi aerodrome. 

The report—collated and sent to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) authorities on 11 October—links the prevalence of these shops to increasing number of bird accidents at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi. 

Data from the Ministry of Civil Aviation confirms that from 2018 to 2023, a total of 710 bird accidents occurred at the Delhi airport, and shows that IGI had the highest number of bird accidents among airports in India. 

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As many as 169 bird deaths occurred in the airport in the first 10 months of 2023. In 2022, the number was 184, and in 2021, it was 96. 

According to the official website of the Delhi airport, bird strikes often occur during aircraft takeoff and landing. Such incidents impede the operations of airport authorities and smooth functioning of aircraft, and since unhygienic residue from meat shops may attract birds, it is illegal to open slaughterhouses in the vicinity of airports. 

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has guidelines to manage ‘wildlife hazards’ in and around airports, which include prohibitions on high-rise buildings and trees near the aerodrome area so as not to obstruct aircraft activity. The prohibition on meat shops and slaughtering operates on the same principle.

“According to Rule 91 of the Aircraft Rules, 1937, there exists a statutory prohibition on the slaughtering and flaying of animals within a radius of ten kilometers from the aerodrome,” reads the report, a copy of which has been accessed by The Print. 

It investigates and documents food safety norms, environment norms and airport rule violations through documents and photographs of meat shops from March 2023 through July 2024. 

Other meat market clusters within the 10-kilometre radius of the IGI airport are present in areas like Chanakyapuri, Dwarka, Delhi Cantonment and RK Puram. The report says that they pose a significant threat not just to airport operations but also to public health because of gross violations of food safety standards and environment norms that prohibit live slaughtering of animals in wet markets without a slaughtering licence.

The prohibition on meat shops is to ensure that vultures and other scavenger birds attracted to animal carcasses, bones or remains are kept away from the aerodrome area that has heavy air traffic. 

Despite the restrictions, more than 10,000 Pariah kites (black kites) have been spotted flying above the Sadar Bazar area in the aerodrome, because of the burgeoning meat market there, the report says.  

Citing evidence, the report underscores the steps taken by different government departments, including the Delhi Police, against the operation of such meat shops. 

People For Animals analysed minutes of the meetings held by the Airfield Environment Management Committee (AEMC) to understand how effective surprise inspections by authorities between 2008 and 2023 have been in the removal of such meat shops.

But such efforts have been futile, experts say. 

Gauri Maulekhi, a People For Animals trustee, told ThePrint that the reason this has been a larger issue for over 15 years now is because authorities have failed to implement strong action against the shopkeepers. 

“Since 2008, about 24 meetings of the AEMC have been held. All of them said the same thing—closure and monitoring of shops, among others. Some years, they just copy-pasted the same recommendations during multiple meetings,” Maulekhi said.

“It goes to show that there is no real political or municipal will to actually deliver on such actions and clean up the mess!”

She added that this is not just a public safety issue due to the threat posed by bird accidents and strikes, but also a public health issue. “This is because these meat shops and slaughterhouses do not have licences, do not follow food safety protocols, and their products are not certified.”

But the complete absence of action on ground, Maulekhi said, confirms malignant corruption and irremediable lethargy in the MCD and Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) machinery.

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Investigation into meat shops 

People For Animals conducted their investigation for 16 months, visiting meat shop clusters near the IGI airport area, gathering photographic evidence of their existence, understanding how they conduct operations and waste management, and observing the available infrastructure to store livestock. 

One of the main points raised in the report is that these meat shops and clusters engaged in slaughtering and selling animals, despite two different laws prohibiting these activities. 

Firstly, the Aircraft Rules, 1937 prevent the slaughter of animals within a 10-km radius of the airport, and secondly, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001 prohibit the slaughter of animals in any place that is not a licensed slaughterhouse.

None of the meat shops the NGO visited is a licensed slaughterhouse. In fact, the only licensed slaughterhouse in Delhi is in Ghazipur.

The report includes pictures from unlicensed meat clusters in Mahipalpur, Vasant Kunj and RK Puram, which highlight the improper hygiene and lack of cold storage in these shops. 

Drains in and around these shops are clogged with animal remains, blood and bones from illegal slaughtering. 

Maulekhi explained that these 19 shops and meat clusters are not the only ones that prevail around the aerodrome region, adding that one cluster could have up to 150 different meat shops within it. 

People For Animals recommends that MCD, DPCC, the MCD veterinary services department, and the AEMC of IGI Airport take strict action to monitor, inspect, and shut down all shops violating protocol in the aerodrome. Also, the report suggests sensitisation workshops for police officers to pave the way for prompt action in case of complaints. 

“Since 2008, various government departments have attempted and documented the steps they will take to stop this illegal slaughter and sale of meat near the airport.  But even in July 2024, we saw the shops operating openly,” said Maulekhi. “This total lack of action makes it seem like the lawmakers have never met the people who implement the law since there is no coordination.”

Shreemoye Chakraborty, director of public policy at People For Animals Public Policy Foundation, and one of the key contributors to the report, told ThePrint that the shopkeepers are well aware that they are in violation of norms, but they have gone “scot-free” for so long that even routine inspections do not faze them anymore.

“Sometimes, when their shop is shut down, they just encroach another piece of land and open it there,” she added.

(Edited by Radifah Kabir)

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