‘Abattoir,’ the synonym of a slaughterhouse, is a place where animals are slaughtered for food. Abattoirs play a crucial link in the meat industry, allowing the meat business operators (MBOs) to address animal welfare and food safety aspects during the process of slaughtering animals.

Current status of slaughter operations

Currently, the slaughter operations are highly fragmented in India, especially in the rural/village areas, and tens of thousands of animals are slaughtered in unauthorized places every day by ‘meat personnel’ or ‘butchers.’ Most such places, however, handle only one or two animals in a day.

In India, the abattoir is a State subject, and many states have enacted their own regulations pertaining to the installation and maintenance of slaughterhouses, though the extent of enforcement is questionable. As a consequence of these regulations, major cities and towns in most of the Indian States have established ‘municipal slaughterhouses’ with the purpose of providing hygienic meat to their citizens.

Most of such slaughter units were established under the administrative control of respective Veterinary Departments or related public sector institutions. However, despite having adequate infrastructure, the numbers of animals slaughtered in such units in many