PETA India’s Unique Pujo Installation Inspires Kindness to All of God’s Creation
Kolkata : The City of Joy, known for its artistry and vibrant celebrations, witnessed a unique and compassionate twist to Durga Pujo festivities this year. At the Atlanta Club – Tollygunge pandal, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India unveiled an extraordinary installation: two joyful horses seated as passengers in a heritage-style motorised carriage, driven by a cheerful human.
The display seeks to reimagine Kolkata’s streets, envisioning a future where horses are no longer exploited to pull heavy carriages through traffic but instead treated with dignity and kindness. The thought-provoking installation highlighted the possibility of shifting to motorised, heritage-style vehicles—preserving the cultural charm without cruelty.
Campaign for a Kinder Kolkata
Pandal visitors can scan a QR code to learn about PETA India’s campaign to replace horse-drawn carriages in Kolkata with motorised carriages. Investigations by PETA India and the CAPE Foundation have repeatedly exposed the grim conditions of the city’s horses: many are found malnourished, injured, exhausted, or overworked, and reports of collapsed, dead, or dying horses from the trade are disturbingly common.
In Mumbai, horse-drawn carriages have already been replaced with elegant, heritage-style eco-friendly e-carriages, demonstrating that tradition and compassion can beautifully co-exist.
Call to Action
“Kolkata’s streets are filled with beauty and art – that’s what sets us apart,” said Chumki Dutta, Advocacy Associate at PETA India. “Through this Pujo installation, we invite visitors to join us in making our city even more beautiful, by replacing horse-drawn carriages with heritage-style motorised vehicles like the one you see here.”
Last year, following persistent appeals from PETA India and the CAPE Foundation, the Calcutta High Court directed the West Bengal state government to submit a proposal for rehabilitating horse owners and providing them with alternative livelihoods. This directive aimed at evaluating the feasibility of replacing horse-drawn carriages with humane alternatives, as successfully implemented in Mumbai.
A Broader Message
PETA India’s installation does more than celebrate artistry; it delivers a moral message during a festival that honours the triumph of good over evil. It urges citizens to extend kindness and respect to all of God’s creation, moving towards a future where animals are not exploited for entertainment or labour.
PETA India—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—continues to oppose speciesism, the human-supremacist belief system that views animals as inferior and exploitable.
For more details about the campaign to end horse-drawn carriages in Kolkata, visit:
🔗 PETA Investigation Report
🔗 Emergency State of Kolkata’s Horses
