Compassionate Crusaders believe that “Every single creature is full of God and is a book about God.” And have come a long way since it started out on its journey in November 1993.
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This year too, like last year, we have had no financial help from the Government, either central or state, nor related agencies like MP/MLALAD. By sheer improved financial

management and optimum utilization of resources, yet again we have improved on our balance sheet without any significant financial liabilities. Most important we have

never compromised on the quality of our service to the poor suffering animals of our city, which is after all the very reason for our existence.

Help has come, mostly, from the goodwill and support of the people of Calcutta, a city famous for its warmth and kindness.We salute calcuttans for their attitude and awareness,

and recognize the vital role they play in the success of our endeavours.

“Never assume that the recipient of your charity is lower than you are, as he may very well be an angel in disguise"- Ms.Ruchi Kohli of Columbia ,USA, a sentiment that captures the

worldview of the Compassionate Crusaders.

Fortunately there have been corporate donations coming our way through our Special Commemorative Issue of our newsletter, Animal Crusaders which has been well received.

Let me quote here from some of the communications received.

Thank you for the copy of Animal Crusaders: Commemorative Issue, it was very interesting to read.-Coralie Farren, International Project Manager, RSPCA

Thanks, & thanks for including my interview. Many happy returns! -- Merritt Clifton, Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE, USA

I read your publication with considerable interest and it must have taken considerable work to put together. Looks good – well done to all.- Les Ward, Scotland

Animal Crusaders really does do such extremely worthwhile work for so many animals. I am very happy to hear about all the wonderful work that you have been doing!.- Sharon St

Joan, International Consultant, Best Friends Animal Society, USA

Regarding Animal Crusaders, it is really wonderful and it must have taken such a long time to produce. My little story came out very well I think and hope you liked it too. Wishing you

all the very best - you deserve it as your life is spent trying to make the lives of animals better and educate people on the care of them.- Pamela M Barton, Hong Kong

The cadets and all who have been fortunate enough to pursue this magazine have been enlightened – Lt.Cdr. S.Chakraborty, Instructor, Rashtriya Indian Military College, Dehradun

Your commemorative issue of "ANIMAL CRUSADERS" was a revelation for me. Over and above your magazine is so well complied and presented that it is difficult to believe that

you actually started off with only a kitty of Rs.1000/-. May your message of compassion to our fellow living beings spread far and wide.- Dr.(Mrs.) Shashi Panja, MMiC, KMC

Thank you for the issues of the quarterly newsletter. Let me congratulate you on the publication and on the success it reflects. Compassion is seriously challenged ! And so every

achievement of it or on its behalf is precious. - Gopalkrishna Gandhi

Your publication, "Animal Crusaders," in its deeply moving language of anecdotes and incidents brings out emphatically the imperative need for compassion towards our fellow-beings,

the animals of this earth. I am confident it will go a long way in promoting this realisation. – KPS Menon

A special mention must be made about the two most compassionate souls Mrs. Kim Bartlett and Mr. Merritt Clifton, the driving force of the Animal People (U.S.A.) news magazine

for their cooperation and unfailing support. ‘Animal People’ is the world’s most widely read international monthly on animal welfare/rights. It is also one of the most highly respected

because they give a ‘Watchdog’ page, analyzing the work and expenditure of animal welfare groups round the world. Readers know that everything written has been personally

verified, and is authentic. People who wish to contribute to helping animals all over the world find this particularly helpful, and people like us are deeply grateful because of the

donations we get from readers of ‘Animal People’

Anti-Fur Society & Shannon Keith, film producer and director of Skin Trade, www.SkinTradethemovie.com, and Behind the Mask www.arme.tv will be holding their first Conference in

the Washington DC metro area, in the Old Town of Alexandria, June 25-26, 2011. Hi Debasis, This is where I will be present to present your organization. Rosa, President of Anti-fur,

has offered me a space at the animal conference to set up a booth to promote Animal Crusaders. This event will not be held until the summer so let's hope for a huge turnout for

supporting the animals. -Ruchi, Ms.Ruchi Kohli of Columbia ,USA wrote back.

Mr.Sukanto Sinha of San Francisco has been a staunch supporter, this year he has become a Life Member.

Ms.Shahin Popple of England came to the city and got some timely help from our team, went back and wrote Please e-mail me as soon as you get the money. I will send more

from time to time. You are doing a great job, all the best, Shahin.

As always, a rare compassionate gesture by the most benevolent calcuttan, Shri. Basant Kumar and Dr.(Smt.) Sarala Birla ; encouraging us by sending a donation without waiting for

a ‘formal’ letter of appeal!

Like last year, The Royal Calcutta Turf Club (RCTC) have already come forward with a very generous donation to support us. They have also been freely supplying drinking water to

our Water Tanker for the animals since the day one. We mention with gratitude, the kind gesture of the Hastings Chapel authorities for allowing us to park our tanker round the year.

Since the beginning of this year-2009, Compassionate Crusaders Trust have the sole responsibility of treatment/drinking water of the Maidan-ponies, rescue of domestic/wild animals

around the city, animal control and critically important Animal Birth Control/Anti Rabies program for dogs & cats of the city’s important hospitals and high-security Police &

Military areas.

Our Patron, Mr.K.P.S. Menon’s clarion call is “Fight against corruption. It is eating the soul of our country…... corruption and inefficiency have become the hallmarks of our functioning”

Sensitive citizens across the globe were shell-shocked by the despicable stand of the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) in publishing an advertisement sponsored by Animal

Skin Traders.

Merritt Clifton, Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE wrote, I have been asked to comment on the matter of the Animal Welfare Board of India allowing the Council for Leather Exports to sponsor

advertisements for Animal Welfare Fortnight. I have refrained from commenting for the past week because I had sent e-mails to several of the apparent participants in making the

AWBI decision asking for their perspectives. I did not express an opinion of my own; I merely asked: How did it come to pass that the Council for Leather Exports is sponsoring

Animal Welfare Fortnight advertising? Not one has responded so far. The silence suggests that the recipients of the inquiries may be having difficulty constructing a response,

because they may realize that allowing the Council for Leather Exports to use the good name of Animal Welfare Fortnight was a tactical mistake.

Our Patron’s wife and a Life Member Mrs. Lalitha Menon have expressed her feelings, “It does seem bizarre that AWBI should tamely accept the Leather Mafia to sponsor the crucial

ad. It seems to me to be yet another instance of official hypocrisy and corruption as you suggest. Hats off to you for refusing their grant.”

Diana Ratnagar, Chairperson of BWC India has written, I've taken long to respond, but that doesn't mean that I am overlooking the AWBI's stand on leather. I have written an article

on the subject and is being printed in the forthcoming issue of Compassionate Friend (May 2011). BWC, like the CCT, stopped asking for a grant from the AWBI decades back.

But, let me tell you that there was a time when animal welfare organisations were asked by the AWBI officials to give money under the table (25% of grant sanctioned) for releasing the

grant money which was then sent in the last week of March on condition it be utilised before the 31st.

Many such unethical activities, using the name of Gandhiji, President & Prime Minister., misusing govt. funds has made CCT disillusioned about AWBI and subsequently CCT has

stopped accepting grants from them, even returning the grant in 2008!

On the positive side, we would like to thank Mr. Pradip Kumar Mitra for donating Lamp post fitted with Solar panel and light for Karuna Kunj. We would also like to thank the

generous family of Mr. Anwarul Islam and his compassionate wife Mrs. Majeda Islam, who made it possible for us to beautify garden Eden for pets, Karuna Kunj. Thanks also to

their son Mr. Areful Islam’s firm, The Calcutta Construction Company, who sponsored the extension of the Cattery and The Saturday Club’s kind donation of the play-things like

Jungle Gym, Slide, Swing for the enjoyment of the cats at Karuna Kunj cattery, transforming it into a Feline Disney Land.

The ‘Memorial to Every Loving Pet’ stands in all its gracious serenity, with the touching poem that brings a lump to the animal lovers’ throat!

Social Networking through web is on. A Facebook Fan Page of the Animal Crusaders is created by Mr.Paul Suit of Baltimore USA, An Orkut community named Lovers of animal

crusaders created by our youngest crusader Dwaipayan is also doing well. We thank them both!

Symbiotic crusade for compassion continues. Like previous years, a social communication Intern had a stint with the Compassionate Crusaders in the summer of 2009. Mr. Chirantan

Mahajan, Media trainee of the Batch of 2011, nominated by the Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication, Symbiosis International University, Pune. Chirantan has created

a complete package of excellent campaign materials like videos, posters etc. Kudos to Chirantan !

There are over 40 zoonotic diseases of which animals are carriers. Transmitted from animal to human, crossing the species barrier and hitting at other species (including humans) is a grim warning of the consequences of neglecting the importance of animal welfare..

Philanthropists and social workers (including the medical fraternity) seldom realize that to help the health and economy of a society, it is vital to focus on preventive (rather than

curative) health care. The truncated approach and a myopic focus of the human race is resulting in our losing humane values. The lives of millions of humans in developing countries

can be improved substantially by preventing the source of the disease instead of spending several times more to cure the diseased people after they have been infected.

The media has been extremely supportive even though we could never offer them any thing other than our sincerity for the cause of compassion. As Mahatma Gandhi said- Mother

Earth has enough for everybody’s need but there can never be enough for everybody’s greed! I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the media personnel whose innate

sensitivity and skillful pen and camera voiced needs of the mutes and the Compassionate Crusaders’ endeavor in creating a kinder world.

Our “Free the Tree” campaign has got a boost by the Election Commission’s directive against the misuse of tree in political campaigns and support by The Telegraph, Calcutta. Even

Kolkata Municipal Corporation is considering filing of FIR on nailing of trees, as per a HT, Calcutta report

Times of India report of April 19, 2011 on a Supreme court verdict banning child labour in circuses “Court Tells Govt To Conduct Raids, Rescue & Rehabilitate Minors Child labor in

circuses”. We joined other animal welfare orgs, fighting (upto the apex court from 1991-2001) against use of wild animals in circus, succeeding in getting govt. order in 2001

banning the use of Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Bear & Monkey.. All along CCT has been doing a media campaign (including live Tv debate with the indian circus association on the issue

of using children and non-existent INSURANCE for Injury during performance.

Supreme Master Television. TAIPEI SMTV (2.5 billion viewers around the world, in 40 languages) has done extensive recording of our activity in Karuna Kunj and also our city clinic

at Tollygunge. Thank you very much for the photos and also thank you for your hospitality during our visit to India. Please keep on your noble work in helping more animals in need,

and please keep us in touch, Ms. Tina Huang of Supreme Master Television. TAIPEI SMTV, wrote back.

The Telegraph ‘s coverage of our emergency pet care everyday and also in their Metro Guide is a real boon, because it is one of one of the most widely read newspapers in the city and

elsewhere. As also Hindustan Times’ daily publication of Compassionate Crusaders’ Animal Helpline. Many pets have benefited by this action of theirs.

Mr. Ranajit Nobis have had a short but inspiring stint as our Chairman, had to resign for personal reason. So is Mr.Ram Gupta one of our outgoing trustees.

Mr. Russi Mody has retired from public life, but he continues to give his precious words of advice whenever we need!

Mr.Sharada Prasad Chakravarty has had long and successful stint as a trustee, he retired, but he continues to give his words of advice and active help.

Our association with RSPCA, U.K. continues.

The Animal lovers of Kolkata can boast as the only METRO CITY in the country to have a 24 Hour “ANIMAL HELPLINE” in two prominent dailies!

We have decided to discontinue our eight page, quarterly black& white newsletter and will publish one thicker coloured version each year. Our regular activity update, including

pictures will be available at the facebook profile “Compassionate Crusaders Trust”, created by Amar Nath Ghosh.

We will continue to post our yearlong activity details and audited accounts on our website.. Our website www.animalcrusaders.org displays the Videos of some of our activities…we

hope to keep on adding more!