SSC · Railway
The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) was established in:
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Answer: Option B — 1962
Detailed Solution
The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) was established in 1962 under Section 4 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
About the Animal Welfare Board of India:
- It is a statutory advisory body that advises the Government of India on animal welfare laws and promotes animal welfare in the country.
- It was set up under the guidance of the well-known humanitarian and dancer Rukmini Devi Arundale, who was its first chairperson and who had introduced the bill on animal welfare in the Rajya Sabha.
- It was earlier headquartered in Chennai; its headquarters is now at Ballabhgarh, in the Faridabad district of Haryana (moved in 2018).
- It works under the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (earlier under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change).
Its functions:
- To ensure that animal welfare laws are followed.
- To provide grants to animal welfare organisations (AWOs), such as animal shelters (gaushalas and pinjrapoles).
- To recognise animal welfare organisations.
- To advise the government on rules to prevent unnecessary pain or suffering to animals, especially during transport, experimentation and slaughter.
- To promote humane education and awareness about animals.
About the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960:
- It is the main law in India for the protection of animals from cruelty.
- It defines and punishes acts of cruelty to animals.
- It also provides for the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA).
Constitutional provisions:
- Article 48 (Directive Principle): directs the state to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern lines and to prohibit the slaughter of cows and calves.
- Article 51A(g) (Fundamental Duty): to have compassion for living creatures.
About Rukmini Devi Arundale (1904-1986):
- She was a famous Bharatanatyam dancer who helped revive the dance form.
- She founded "Kalakshetra" in Chennai in 1936, an institution for the arts.
- She was nominated to the Rajya Sabha and was the first woman in India to be nominated to it.
- She received the Padma Bhushan in 1956.
Related days:
- World Animal Day: 4 October.
- Animal Welfare Fortnight: observed in India from 14 to 31 January.
Why not the other options?
- ✗1972 is the year of the Wild Life (Protection) Act.
- ✗1960 is the year of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
- ✗1986 is the year of the Environment (Protection) Act.
Quick tip
Remember: Animal Welfare Board of India = 1962 (under Section 4 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960; Rukmini Devi Arundale; HQ Ballabhgarh, Haryana); Wild Life Act = 1972; World Animal Day = 4 October.
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This question tests your understanding of Biodiversity, National Parks & Wildlife, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers biodiversity and its conservation: biodiversity hotspots, endangered and endemic species, the IUCN Red List, in-situ and ex-situ conservation, India's national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, tiger reserves and biosphere reserves, and wildlife conservation projects. Questions commonly ask in which state a national park is located and which animal it is known for (Kaziranga in Assam for the one-horned rhinoceros, and Gir in Gujarat for the Asiatic lion), when Project Tiger began (1973), and which regions of India are biodiversity hotspots. The number of protected areas changes as new ones are declared, so check the latest lists. Practise the biodiversity and conservation questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.