Lucknow, Oct 8 (IANS): With the easing of Covid restrictions, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India will be launching an ad blitz on billboards near bird markets in Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. It will point out that caged birds endure a lifetime in lockdown and urge people to help break the bars by never buying birds from markets or pet shops.

The billboard in Lucknow is located at King George's Medical University which is near the Nakhaas bird market.

"Without hope that their lockdown will end, many captive birds tear out their feathers, cry out, and even collapse," said PETA India Senior Campaigns Coordinator, Radhika Suryavanshi.

In a release she said, "PETA India is asking people to see birds not as decorative objects but as individuals with their own needs."

Birds in nature are free to fly as far as they wish and to engage in social activities such as taking sand baths, playing hide-and-seek, dancing, building nests with their mates, and nurturing their young.

But those kept in cages without stimulation or room to spread their wings can become depressed and withdrawn and often over-preen themselves to the point of mutilation. Some people even have birds' wings clipped so that they are unable to fly.

Following a recent PETA India appeal, the Central government statutory body -- the Animal Welfare Board of India -- issued a new advisory to all states and Union Territories to ensure a ban on the caging of birds.

Caging birds violates The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and often The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.