The government of India and Union ministers Parshottam Rupala and Sanjeev Balyan have considered an appeal by PETA to include companion animals in the evacuation of Indians stuck in war-torn Ukraine.
“Separating animal companions from their guardians would have resulted in more tragedy,” PETA tweeted.
Reportedly a third-year student, Rishabh Kaushik was struggling to get a clearance for his dog Malibu at the Kharkiv National University of Radio Electronics. In a widely circulated video, Kaushik is seen expressing how the Indian embassy in Ukraine and the Centre’s Animal Quarantine and Certification Service were asking for more and more documents for bringing his dog along.
“Today morning we all woke up with bombings… even my dog is scared, he’s crying all the time,” he said. In addition, Kaushik said he would keep his dog warm when he came out of freezing bunkers.
In another viral video, Kerala’s Arya Aldrin said she sacrificed a lot to bring her dog along. “After going through so many hardships, if I am not able to take her on the flight with me, all of my efforts would go in vain. So, please all of you, pray for us.”
Union minister Vijay Kumar Singh shared the video and tweeted: “Some of the evacuees brought their four-legged best friends as well. Good to have all of our Indian students aboard on the IAF C-17 Globemaster ready to return to the safety of our motherland.”
