India grants one-time waiver for returning Indians to bring pets

New Delhi: The Centre has granted a one-time waiver to allow Indians fleeing war-hit West Asia to bring along their pet dogs and cats without strict pre-import and health certification formalities, ET has learnt. The decision has come amid reports of mass abandonment of pets in war-affected countries as people flee for safety.

The 'one-time relaxation' was initiated by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD) that highlighted the "extraordinary situations in war-hit Middle East countries" in an office memorandum last week.

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Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs followed through on Monday, issuing a circular to all customs officials to allow import of dogs and pet cats along with stranded Indians in war-hit West Asian countries. Tens of thousands of Indians working in the region are returning home due to the war.

"There were several cases of returning Indians requesting they be allowed to bring their pets along with them and ease up rulebooks for now, given the stressful circumstances," a senior official told ET. "There were also several representations and references that came on the subject. It was finally decided to relax regulatory requirements in view of the distress to the owners and the pets."

Several animal care shelters and networks have been mobilised to rescue and rehabilitate affected pets, but the numbers are challenging. On Thursday, Greece launched a successful animal airlift, bringing back dozens of pets and their owners from Abu Dhabi.

Normally, pets can only be imported into India at designated airports and after mandatory vaccinations, a no-objection certificate from an Indian animal quarantine certification service and a health certificate from the origin country, besides microchipping of the pet.

THE THREE CONDITIONS

DAHD has now relaxed these requirements for Indians working in West Asia, but has set three pre-conditions.

One The owner must declare that the pet was residing with them for at least the past one month.

Two They should produce a pet vaccination certificate/pet book/pet passport indicating the history of vaccination, but due/delayed vaccinations will be considered in the given situation.

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Three In case of pet animals being lifted from another nearby country, owners should try to get the animal checked by local veterinary authorities at the airport.

Post-import rulebooks will require that pets imported with proper vaccination certificates from their own or a neighbouring country will be given final AQCS clearance after a clinical examination. However, those imported without any such certification or record will be vaccinated for rabies and clinically examined before final clearance.

In case of any abnormal findings, quarantine and vaccination and other medical charges are to be borne by the owner.

DAHD has underlined that this facilitation will not be considered as a "precedent in future". It underlined that amid the fast-changing situation and rising uncertainty, this relaxation is being issued for a "specific and unique moment" to help Indians bring back their pets.