KATHMANDU, Feb. 24 -- Animal welfare activists have emphasized the need for the timely introduction followed by strict implementation of the Animal Welfare Act to address the problems of cruel treatment of animals.

At an interaction program held at the capital on Saturday, pioneer animal rights activist Sneha Shrestha, highlighted the comparative development of animal welfare laws and related governmental bodies to safeguard the rights of animals in India to emphasize the urgent need of similar laws and governmental bodies in Nepal too.

"Our southern neighbor India introduced the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act in 1960 and Animal Welfare Board in 1962," Shrestha said, "We need to learn a lesson from them and introduce similar laws...