Chennai, March 2025
Scripting a monumental journey, historian V. Sriram and Lashman document the 60 years of Blue Cross in their book “Memories and Milestones”, which was released by Hon’ble Mr. Justice P.N. Prakash, Former judge of Madras High Court and former Special Public Prosecutor, National Investigation Agency, in the presence of Mrs. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Animal rights activist, and Environmentalist and Mr. A. L. Somayaji, Former Advocate General, Government of Tamil Nadu, who also received the first copy of the book, at a function held here in Chennai on 15th March 2025.
Celebrating Blue Cross and its 60th anniversary, one cannot stop but applaud the achievements of the Sundaram family and all the others who have volunteered and worked for the Blue Cross of India, since its first registration in 1964. The most active animal welfare group in the country that has many firsts to its credit. The first of a new genre of animal protection groups that were concerned with all animals, the one that pioneered some path breaking initiatives like the Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme, the first time in the world, where the sterilization of street dogs was put forward as a humane approach to control growing dog population, first in the world to begin interactive computer programmes as an alternative to dissection of animals in schools, and the first animal welfare group in India to get the Platinum Level certification for transparency from GuideStar India in 2013.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Chinny Krishna the co-founder of Blue Cross and the Praani Mitra awardee from the Indian government for his lifetime of animal service shared that running any organisation for 60 years was difficult; running an organisation in the animal welfare field, a Herculean task. Welcoming Mrs. Maneka Gandhi and thanking her for her presence, Dr. Krishna said, “Much of the work done wouldn’t have been possible, but for the sympathetic listener in parliament, Mrs. Maneka Gandhi, who was able to understand what was done and being done, and her diligent follow ups with legislation on aspects of animal welfare”.
“Till 1987, the Blue Cross of India was a volunteer group with 24×7 ambulance services driven by off duty Indian Airlines pilots. Of course, it helped that both my parents were pilots – my mother, Usha Sundaram, was India’s first woman pilot and as the pilots of the Mysore Maharajah’s “luxury” aircraft VT AXX, had the honour and privilege of flying Sardar Patel on his mission to unite the princely states to form the Indian Union. Even today, we are fortunate in having a group of professionals who donate their time and efforts on a purely honorary basis to look after much of the administration and special projects like our adoptathons and the Great Indian Dog Show for Indies and non-pedigrees. This ensures that donations received by us are not unduly eroded by “administrative expenses”, he added.
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