City to lose iconic Victorias in a year as HC cracks whip: The Times of India

Mumbai: The iconic Victorias will finally ride into the sunset in a year's time. In a victory for animal rights activists, the Bombay high court on Monday declared that horse-drawn carriages used for joyrides were "illegal" and set a deadline of June 2016 to phase them out.

Hearing a public interest litigation filed by the NGO Animals and Birds Charitable Trust, Justices Abhay Oka and Anil Menon ordered the BMC to close down stables used to house horses and ponies in the city within a year.

With a view to protecting the 700 families who depend on the plying of the Victorias as a source of livelihood, the court has asked the state to frame a plan for the rehabilitation of the owners and riders, and also the horses. The Victorias currently ply only at Marine Drive, Nariman Po nt and Gateway of India.

"The activity of running carriages or Victorias driven by horses in the city of Mumbai for joyrides is completely illegal and is required to be stopped,“ said the judges, adding that it was also violative of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The activity of horse-driven carriages only for joyrides solely for human pleasure is an avoidable human activity," said the judges. While horse carriages can operate in other cities when used for public conveyance, the HC asked the state to act when they are used for joyrides. The authorities have been asked to act against those treating horses cruelly.

Victorias have been a feature on Mumbai streets for decades. In 1973, when the government brought in a new rule to deny renewal of licenses for the horse-driven carriages, there were around 800 Victorias in the city. By 2011, when the PIL was filed seeking a ban, there were around 130 left.

The HC's reasons for banning them relied on the licensing rules, the Victorias being a safety risk and traffic hazard and the cruelty meted out to the animals. The Victorias were given licences under a 1920 law for being used as a public conveyance. The HC said the Victorias were not presently plying for either conveyance of passengers or goods and their used was limited to joyrides. The court also relied on affidavits filed by the traffic police, who classified these carriages as a safety risk and not in public interest. "The horse-drawn carriages now serve to be an encumbrance and a hazard on the already crowded streets of Mumbai," said the affidavit.

The court took into consideration the traffic police's report on the way horses were treated-unfit horses were made to draw overloaded carriages and were made to ply on concrete and tar roads without proper horse shoes.

The HC cited a report by veterinarian Dr Nilesh Bhamre that found that 87% horses suffered from lameness and limb abnormality, 80% had hoof problems and 77% had wounds. The HC said it was upholding the traffic police reason for the ban, pointing to the fundamental duty of citizens under the Constitution to show compassion to all living beings. The HC has slated the case for hearing in January 2016, for the authorities to file a compliance report and submit the rehabilitation plan.