PETA alleges cruelty on animals at govt registered testing lab

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), India, released disturbing evidence of large-scale cruelty inflicted on animals at Palamur Biosciences Pvt Ltd, a government-registered contract testing laboratory in Telangana. The facility, which tests drugs, pesticides and medical devices—often for international clients—has been accused of brutal and unlawful treatment of dogs, monkeys and pigs.

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Based on whistleblower accounts, photographic and video evidence shared with the media on Tuesday in the national capital, the organisation has described the findings as the “first-of-its-kind” exposé revealing the dark underbelly of India’s contract testing industry.

According to PETA India, over 1,500 beagles were kept in a facility designed for just 800—many confined three or four to a cage. The resulting overcrowding led to violent fights, injuries and a lack of basic veterinary care. Dogs were allegedly handled violently, with reports of fractures, untreated abscesses and grotesque wounds caused by subcutaneous injections of experimental compounds.

Footage released shows dogs lying in pools of blood, suffering from ulcers and painful infections. Worse still, whistleblowers claim that dogs were killed using thiopentone without sedation—causing immense distress in their final moments.

The cruelty was not limited to canines. The lab reportedly sourced rhesus macaques from Rajasthan, some of whom tested positive for zoonotic diseases like monkeypox. Instead of alerting authorities, the infected monkeys were quietly killed, risking wider public health exposure. Similarly, minipigs imported from Denmark were allegedly bred without licence; newborn piglets were killed via painful intracardiac injections on orders of the head veterinarian.

“PETA India’s exposé of this major contract laboratory rips open the veil of secrecy that allows such suffering to flourish unchecked,” said Dr Anjana Aggarwal, Scientist and Research Policy Advisor at PETA India. “These findings represent not only gross animal cruelty, but also a serious lapse in scientific ethics and public safety. Anything less than the permanent shutdown of Palamur Biosciences is unacceptable.”

The group has filed formal complaints with the Committee for the Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA), the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and the National GLP Compliance Monitoring Authority (NGCMA). It is calling for cancellation of the lab’s animal testing registration, criminal prosecution of those responsible and rehabilitation of surviving animals.