The Pink Room: Conversation with an animal lover Utpal Khot who is urging all to be The Real Human

"Dogs have shown us that despite being very territorial, during the time of this pandemic, they realise hunger is a more important issue than territory. Humans have still not understood this important life lesson. We still fight with each other on religion, caste, gender, political affiliations, and community," says Utpal Khot, who is a leading food & lifestyle blogger, and works as a social media consultant for several leading organisations of the country. More importantly, he is the founder of an NGO, 'Being the Real Human Foundation', which works towards the well-being of animals. He has been felicitated by organisations like PETA and PETFED for his exemplary work in animal welfare. "I've been doing social work for the last 18 years and out of which the last 9-10 years have been dedicatedly for animals," he narrates the journey of his NGO. "By 2017, several like-minded volunteers joined my cause, and I realised that it is time to officially register the NGO," he adds as his furry friend barks from the adjacent room. 

In the last two years, the followers and volunteers of the Foundation have increased manifold. "We have people right from Panvel to Airoli on this side of Navi Mumbai. Besides, we have a strong team of volunteers who cover the whole of Hyderabad wherein they feed a lot of dogs, help in the rescue, adoptions as well as, administering the basic treatments to animals in need," he says. The COVID-19 infection had ushered in a series of unverified claims which blamed animals for the spread of the virus. Consequently, there was a psychological barrier that stopped people from taking care of strays. "The current pandemic has posed a serious challenge to our works. The regular dog feeders who used to feed at least 2-3 strays out of love and compassion have stopped it fearing the risk of infection," he says while adding, "I will not blame them because they're also worried about their health. There is so much misinformation and lack of education about the pandemic that people have developed a misconception about animals. Even some of the animal lovers, we used to know, have shown signs of worry." This sudden reluctance of volunteers has put pressure on the existing and determined animal lovers like Utpal. Earlier, his routine included feeding around 20 strays in a day. Now, it has spiked to as much as 120-150 dogs per day. 

"I don't have to go far [in search of hungry dogs]. I can find at least 20 dogs in the vicinity of my residential society. Step 100 meters out of this radius, and you can find another group of 20-30 famished stray dogs. In Navi Mumbai, the homes are a bit more scattered and there are deserted areas with no human activity during this lockdown period. Resultantly, these animals are ravenous to the extent that their ribs are easily visible. Sometimes, they don't even find a potable source of water," Utpal says. He claims that this has required him to increase his daily preparation and distribution of dog food from 3Kgs to 10 Kgs. Together with his team, they are taking care of around 500 dogs from Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad regions. Despite the pressure, The Real Human Foundation team has however asked its young volunteers (18-25 years) to not hit the ground. "Young volunteers are the most zealous and often neglect health claiming nothing will happen to them. However, as the founder of this group, it is my responsibility to take care of them. We have issued similar requests to all members who are above the age of 50 years," he says. Utpal's Foundation has not yet accepted any monetary donations and is running the program solely on the contributions of time, effort, and food by the volunteers. "We did not start this expecting any donation or government support. The only request we have is that we are almost over with our supply of food. Through the media, we want to reach out to the relevant officials to allocate some quantity of dog food to people like us. We have written to the Chief Ministers Office several times in anticipation of a response," he says, pausing to add, "If the lockdown was over, we could try and manage on our own. However, we are struggling here now as the availability and accessibility is a huge concern."

"Getting an access pass during the lockdown is another difficulty. Thankfully, for my zone, the Panvel Municipal Corporation has come forward and promised to issue special passes which will allow the volunteers to travel up till Khargar. If we can get similar support from other zones and regions, it would be endearing," he adds. "I have constantly faced this question: But should we feed stray dogs? Let's for a minute set aside our love and affection for animals, and look at the practical issue at hand. If people like us don't feed these animals, they will imminently die due to starvation, which is going to create a health hazard for the entire city," Utpal claims. "According to various reports, there are approximately 20-30 million stray dogs in India. Just imagine one fine day you wake up and realise that out of that 10,000 dogs are now dead. Where will you dispose them? There aren't many animal crematoriums in our country. In fact, Navi Mumbai has none, and I think Mumbai has just one. We can't expect the Municipal Corporation to lend a hand as they are already loaded with COVID related works. You can't find space to bury them all. Neither can you adopt a selfish approach and push them to gutters thinking you can get rid of the issue. It will become more serious than we have imagined," he says with utter disbelief that as a human, we have to be preached about compassion when we are the ones who defined it. He confirms that his application to authorities to sanction a separate land for animal cremations or burials has been pending for two years. But sometimes, it's a different hunger which is difficult to fulfill. Sometimes I come across areas where they are not hungry for food but love and human touch. They wag their tails and come jumping and running towards me. I know they want to be touched, loved, and petted. The sudden disappearance and thinning of human movement have deprived them of this essential part of their lives. Whether you believe it or not, they miss it. "My submission to people is, you may not have food to offer to these animals. The least you can do is to touch and caress them. That's how one becomes a Real Human," #CoronaWarrior Utpal says as he concludes the interview to feed his furry friends. The interview reminded me of two different but pertinent quotes by renowned author, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Mahatma Gandhi. Stevenson once said, "You think those dogs will not be in heaven! I tell you they will be there long before any of us." Closer home, Mahatma Gandhi had a different prism that measured humanity and the nation’s consciousness. He said, "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Regardless of whether you agree with these two, I wish to just remind us all just one thing: A little humanity and compassion have never hurt anyone. 

Editor’s Note: The Pink Room scrutinises how a day in the lives of different professionals have undergone a change during COVID-19 pandemic