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Administrative (Committee For Control And Supervision Of Experiments On Animals) Rules, 2023

Administrative (Committee For Control And Supervision Of Experiments On Animals) Rules, 2023

Administrative (Committee For Control And Supervision Of Experiments On Animals) Rules, 2023

 

[02nd February 2023]

Whereas a draft of the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA) Administrative Rules, 2022 was published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, section 3, sub-section (i) vide notification of the Government of India, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying number G.S.R. 292(E), dated the 11th April, 2022, inviting objections and suggestion from all persons likely to be affected thereby, within a period of thirty days, from the date of which copies of Official Gazette containing the said notification were made available to the public;

And whereas, the copies of the said Gazette were made available to the public on the 11th April, 2022;

And whereas the objections and suggestions received in respect of the said draft rules, have been duly considered by the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals;

Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred under section 15 read with section 38 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act, 1960 (59 of 1960), the Central Government hereby makes the following rules, namely:---

Rule - 1. Short title and commencement

(1)     These rules may be called the Administrative (Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals) Rules, 2023.

(2)     They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

Rule - 2. Definitions


In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,-

(a)      "Act" means the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (59 of 1960);

(b)      "Board" means the Animal Welfare Board of India established under section 4 and as reconstituted from time to time under section 5A of the Act;

(c)      "CCSEA" means the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals established under sub-section (1) section 15 of the Act, (hereinafter referred to as "Committee);

(d)      "Chairman" means the Chairman nominated under sub-section (2) of section 15 of the Act;

(e)      "Member" means a Member of the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals;

(f)       "Member-Secretary" means the Member-Secretary to the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals;

(g)      "IAEC" means Institutional Animal Ethics Committee; and

(h)     "Experimentation" means any programme or project involving use of animal for the acquisition of knowledge of a biological, physiological, ethological, physical or chemical nature; and includes the use of animal in the production of reagents and products such as antigens and antibodies, routine diagnostics, testing activity and establishment of transgenic stocks, for the purpose of saving or prolonging life or alleviating suffering or significant gains in well being for people of the country or for combating any disease whether of human beings or animals;

Rule - 3. Headquarters of Committee


The head quarter of the Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals shall be at New Delhi.

Rule - 4. Constitution of Committee


The Central Government shall constitute Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals as per section 15 of the Act with the following Members, namely:-

(1)     Additional Secretary or equivalent or Joint Secretary, In-Charge of Animal Welfare;

(2)     Joint Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner, In-Charge of Animal Welfare;

(3)     Representative, Animal Welfare Board of India not below the rank of Secretary, Animal Welfare Board of India;

(4)     President, Veterinary Council of India, New Delhi or his Representative not below the rank of Secretary, Veterinary Council of India;

(5)     President, Pharmacy Council of India, New Delhi or his Representative not below the rank of Secretary, Pharmacy Council of India;

(6)     Representative of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization, New Delhi not below the rank of Deputy Drugs Controller;

(7)     Chairman, National Medical Commission, New Delhi or his Representative not below the rank of President, National Medical Commission;

(8)     Chairman, University Grants Commission, New Delhi or his Representative not below the rank of Secretary, University Grants Commission;

(9)     Representative of Indian Council of Medical Research, New Delhi not below the rank of Scientist - F;

(10)   Representative of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi not below the rank of Scientist - F;

(11)   Representative of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi not below the rank of Scientist - F;

(12)   Representative of Department of Biotechnology, New Delhi not below the rank of Scientist - F;

(13)   Three members from the field of Pharmaceutical Science, Bio-Statistics, Veterinary Sciences and Zoology- Members;

(14)   Two members, expert of Livestock or equines or dogs and non human primates- Members; and

(15)   Two socially aware members having knowledge of animal ethics, welfare and alternatives to animal experimentation-Members.

Rule - 5. Chairman of Committee


The Central Government shall nominate Additional Secretary or equivalent or Joint Secretary, in-Charge of Animal Welfare to be its Chairman.

Rule - 6. Member-Secretary of Committee


The Central Government shall nominate Joint Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner, in-Charge of Animal Welfare to be its Member-Secretary.

Rule - 7. Casual Vacancies

(1)     Any casual vacancy arising in the office of a Member shall be filled by Central Government in the manner provided in one or the other of the clauses of rule 4, according to the capacity in which such person had found a place in the Committee as a Member.

(2)     A Member appointed to fill a casual vacancy shall hold office as long as the Member whose place he fills would have been entitled to hold office, if the vacancy has not occurred.

Rule - 8. Resignation

(1)     A Member, other than the Chairman, may by a letter addressed to the Chairman, resign from membership.

(2)     The Chairman may resign from membership by a letter addressed to the Secretary to the Government of India of the administrative Ministry.

(3)     A resignation shall take effect from the date of its acceptance or on the expiry of thirty days from the date of resignation, whichever is earlier.

Rule - 9. Removal from Committee


The membership of a Committee Member may cease, if a Member;-

(a)      absents himself from three consecutive meeting of the Committee without the leave of the Committee; or

(b)      has been adjudged as an insolvent, or;

(c)      has been accused of an offence involving animal cruelty and moral turpitude; or

(d)      has became physically or mentally incapable of acting as such Member.

(e)      has violated the condition of confidentiality of Membership.

Rule - 10. Tenure of Committee


Committee shall be reconstituted from time to time on the expiration of every three years from the date of its reconstitution, as per rule 4.

Rule - 11. Functions of Committee


The Committee shall discharge the following functions, namely;

(a)      registration of establishments engaged in breeding of animals and conducting experiments on animals and renewal of registered establishments.

(b)      constitution, re-constitution and revision of the Institutional Animal Ethics Committee.

(c)      approval of animal house facilities for Small and Large animals.

(d)      examination of research protocols for experimentation on animals or pre-scrutinisation of research protocols on large animals and their approval.

(e)      inspection of animal house facilities of establishments, institutes and centres where experimental animals are kept for research, production of Biopharmaceuticals and Breeding purpose.

(f)       conducting conference, seminar, workshops, nominee trainings and the like for the awareness of laboratory animal welfare and ethics and to promote the principles of the replacement, reduction and refinement with respect to use of animals for experiments and teaching or training purposes and to recognise the available non- animal methods and non-animal derived biological products as per the mandate of Committee.

(g)      to advise the Government regarding the welfare of animals meant for experimentation in research institutions, pharmaceutical companies and educational institutions.

(h)     to ensure implementation of rules and guidelines of the Committee made under the said Act for welfare of animals.

(i)       analyse inspection reports submitted by the nominee of Committee and scrutinise the minutes of the Institutional Animal Ethics Committee meeting submitted by the establishment.

(j)       make efforts to tap more and more establishments housing laboratory animals and bring them under the ambit of the Committee.

(k)      any other work related to Laboratory Animal Welfare as per the mandate of the Committee assigned as per the said Act.

(l)       revision of the guidelines of Committee, their dissemination, implementation and monitoring.

(m)    grading of animal house facilities purpose wise categorically like that:-

(i)           Medical college set up,

(ii)         Pharmacy college set up,

(iii)       Veterinary college set up,

(iv)       Research Institute set up,

(v)        Pharma industry set up,

(vi)       Vaccine industry set up,

(vii)     Life sciences University set up, and the like.

(n)     maintenance of database on the available non-animal methods for experiments, teaching and training.

Rule - 12. Meetings of Committee

(1)     The meeting of the Committee shall be held once in every month.

(2)     The meetings shall ordinarily be held at the headquarters of the Committee but the Chairman may, if necessary, fix the venue of the meetings at places other than the headquarters of the Committee.

Rule - 13. Disposal of business

(1)     The applications or proposals received in the office of the Committee through its dedicated web portal shall be considered and processed as per the following timelines:-

 

 

Serial Number

 

Activities

 

Timelines




 

1

 

Approval of registration and constitution of Institutional Animal Ethics Committee or Amendment in registration

 

seven working days




 

2

 

Renewal of registration and re-constitution of Institutional Animal Ethics Committee or Revision of Institutional Animal Ethics Committee or Change of Nominee

 

three working days




 

3

 

Pointing out deficiency and rejecting the protocol back to the organization by the Committee

 

three working days




 

4

 

Evaluation of the protocol by sub-committee of Committee and forwarding to the Committee for consideration

 

seven working days




 

5

 

Evaluation and decision on the Large Animal research protocols, if all other prerequisites as per Committee are fulfilled.

 

thirty working days




 

6

 

Committee Meeting

 

once in a month




(2)     The above timelines are subject to submission of all the requisite details and documents by the establishments.

(3)     All matters wherein the deliberation of the Members of Committee is required shall be considered either at its meeting or by circulation of papers.

(4)     When a matter is referred by circulation of papers, any Member may request that the matter may be considered at a meeting of the Committee and thereupon the Chairman may direct that it to be so considered.

Provided that if three or more Members make such a request, the Chairman shall direct that it be so considered.

(5)     The proposals shall be considered deemed to be approved, if it is lying pending for more than one month even after completion of proposal in all respect or the Committee did not deliberate on the proposal for one month.

(6)     The proposals shall be considered rejected if the queries or clarifications raised by the Committee are not replied or complied with within the stipulated time.

Rule - 14. Annual General Meeting

(1)     There shall be an Annual General Meeting once in a year.

(2)     At one of its General Meeting each year, the Member-Secretary shall submit the annual report and the yearly accounts of the Committee for the working of proceeding financial year for the approval of the Committee.

Rule - 15. Special Meetings

(1)     The Chairman shall convene a special meeting of the Committee on the written requisition of fifteen Members of the Committee.

(2)     Any requisition made by the Members of the Committee shall specify the object of the meeting proposed to be called and shall be left at the address of the Member-Secretary or posted to his address.

(3)     Upon such requisition, the Chairman shall give notice of a meeting to be held within thirty days after the receipt of such requisition.

Rule - 16. Notice of Meeting


Every notice calling a meeting of the Committee shall state the date, time and place at which such meeting will be held and shall be served upon every Member of the Committee not less than seven days before the day appointed for the meeting, other than the Annual General Meeting in which case the period of notice shall be not less than fifteen days.

Rule - 17. Quorum for Meetings


Eleven Members of the Committee shall form a quorum at every meeting of the Committee;

Provided that at any meeting in which less than eleven members are present, the Chairman may adjourn the meeting to a date not less than fourteen days later and inform the Members present and notify other Members that he proposed to dispose of the business at the adjourned meeting irrespective of the quorum and it shall thereupon be lawful to dispose of the business at such adjourned meeting irrespective of the number of members attending.

Rule - 18. Procedure at Meetings

(1)     If the Chairman is not present at any meeting of the Committee, the Members shall choose one among themselves to be the Chairman of the meeting.

(2)     In case the difference of opinion amongst the Members at the meeting of the Committee, the opinion of the majority shall prevail.

(3)     Each Member shall have one vote and if there shall be equality of votes on any matter to be decided at a meeting of the Committee, the Chairman of the meeting shall have a casting vote.

(4)     No business which is not on the agenda shall be considered at any meeting without the permission of the Chairman.

(5)     The consensus of the Members present in a particular meeting shall prevail.

Provided that if any Member places on record an objection to any protocol on the basis of availability of an alternative to use of animals, such a protocol proposing to use an animal shall be rejected.

Provided that if any Member places on record an objection along with scientific justification, seeking reduction of the number of animals proposed to be utilised in any protocol being deliberated upon, the Committee shall seek an explanation and justification for the proposed number of animals from the applicant before further deliberations.

Rule - 19. Powers of the Committee to appoint other Committees and sub-Committees and to co-opt persons therein

(1)     The Committee may resolve to constitute such other Committee or sub-Committees from amongst its Members for the administration of its affairs and for carrying out its functions.

(2)     The Committee may co-opt such persons to the Committees or sub-Committees appointed under sub-rule (1) as it considers necessary and suitable, and may permit them to attend the meetings of such Committees or subCommittees and such persons shall include subject-matter experts, including experts in animal-free experimentation methods, from government organisations, non-government organisations, and the public sector.

(3)     A person co-opted under sub-rule (2) for any purpose shall have the right to take part in the discussions relevant to that purpose, but shall not have the right to vote.

(4)     No official or non official Member of Committee shall be nominated as member of Institutional Animal Ethics Committee of his institution or other institutions.

Rule - 20. Allowances

(1)     The Member, other than ex-officio Member, shall be paid such honorarium as may be determined by the Central Government.

(2)     A sitting fee of rupees six thousand shall be provided to all the non-official Members of the Committee or subCommittee and other Expert Committees or the amount prescribed by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India time to time for sitting fees.

(3)     A Member of the Committee who is not an official shall be entitled to draw Travelling Allowance and Incidental Expenditure in respect of any journey performed for the purpose of attending a meeting of the Committee or sub-Committee thereof or any other association or institution to which he is appointed or nominated as a representative of the Committee or any other journey in connection with the work of the Committee performed under the direction of the Chairman.

(4)     A Member of the Committee who is an official shall be entitled to draw, in the circumstances mentioned under sub-rule (3) travelling and daily allowance in accordance with the travelling allowance rules applicable to him from his organisation or Ministry or Department.

(5)     Where a person who is not official or a Member is asked by the Chairman of the Committee to perform any journey for the purpose of attending a meeting of the Committee or sub-Committee thereof or any other journey in connection with the work of the Committee he shall in respect of such journey be entitled to the payment of travelling or conveyance allowance or daily allowance at the rates as per the Government of India guidelines for entitlement of class-I officer.

Rule - 21. Powers and duties of Chairman

(1)     The Chairman shall preside over meetings of the Committee.

(2)     The Chairman shall be responsible for the proper functioning of the Committee and the implementation of its decisions and the discharge of its duties under the Act.

(3)     The Chairman shall, -

(a)      cause important papers and matters to be presented to the Committee as early as practicable;

(b)      cause to be maintained on account of the receipt and expenditure of the Committee;

(c)      cause an annual report of the working of the Committee to be prepared which after being approved at its Annual General Meeting shall be submitted to the Central Government;

(d)      authorise a member or any other person to proceed on work connected with the Committee to any part of India;

(e)      institute criminal proceedings against employees;

(f)       exercise such administrative control over all employees of the Committee; and

(g)      approve proposals for Travelling Allowances and other remuneration such as sitting fees of the Members or Officials or Staff of the Committee as per extant Government of India procedures.

Rule - 22. Powers of Member-Secretary

(1)     The Member-Secretary shall work under the general control of the Chairman who may delegate to him all or any of the following powers and duties namely:-

(a)      convening of meetings of the Committee for under the direction of the Chairman;

(b)      drawing up agenda for each meeting under the Chairmans directions and applying the same to each Member of the Committee, along with the notice of the meeting;

(c)      maintenance of minutes of meetings of the Committee;

(d)      furnishing to the Central Government copies of all reports, including annual reports and returns and necessary documents required under the Act or the rules; and

(e)      preparation of the annual budget of the Committee.

(2)     The Chairman may, with the permission of the Committee, delegate to the Member-Secretary any other function of the Committee or of the Chairman.

(3)     The Member-Secretary shall exercise such financial powers delegated to him as per the provisions laid down in existing General Financial Rules or amendments made there under and the procedures laid down in various orders by Ministry of Finance, Department of Personnel and Training, Ministry of Law and Justice, Ministry of Urban Development and Central Vigilance Commission from time to time.

(4)     Delegated powers shall not be further re-delegated to sub-ordinate officer and Head of Department or organisation shall be responsible for the correctness, regularity and propriety of the decisions taken by them within delegated powers so authorised.

(5)     The Member-Secretary shall keep a record of the Members of the Committee and their addresses.

(6)     If a Member changes his address, he shall notify his new address to the Member-Secretary who shall thereupon enter his new address in the record, but if the Member fails to notify his new address, the address on official record shall for all purpose be deemed to be the Members address.

Rule - 23. Fund of Committee

(1)     In accordance with the sub-section (4) of section 15 of the Act, the funds of the Committee shall consist of grants made to it from time to time by the Government and of contributions, donations, subscriptions, bequests, gifts and the like made to it by any person except from individuals or parties with any potential bias or stake in its decisions, including any one or any group that uses animals for experiments or teaching or training purposes.

(2)     The Committee shall divide the Grants in various head of expenditure and allot the grants in those heads which shall be approved in the first meeting of financial year followed by the approval of the Integrated Finance Division of the administrative Ministry while sending demands for Grants.

(3)     The income of Committee through registration and renewal fee, and any other fee or penalty or charges (such as late fee etc) imposed by the Committee on institutions regulated by the Committee.

Rule - 24. Preparation and Submission of Annual Budget Estimates

(1)     The budget estimates of the Committee for every financial year beginning with the 1st day of April and ending on the 31st day of March following shall be prepared by the Member-Secretary.

(2)     The Committee shall consider and approve the budget estimates with such changes as it thinks fit at the meeting fixed for the consideration of the budget estimates.

(3)     The budget estimates as approved by the Committee shall be submitted to the Central Government for their formal approval before the 31st March or such other date as the Central Government may fix for the purpose.

(4)     Subject to such orders as may be issued by the Central Government from time to time, no expenditure shall be incurred until the budget is sanctioned by the Central Government and expenditure authorised by a competent authority in the Committee.

Rule - 25. Supplementary Estimates


If, during any financial year, for any reasons, substantial modification in the budget estimates as finally approved by the Central Government is likely to the involved, the Committee shall submit for approval to the Central Government supplementary estimates in such form and on such date as the Central Government may direct.

Rule - 26. Investment and Withdrawal of Money

(1)     The bankers of the Committee shall be State Bank of India.

(2)     All funds of the Committee shall be paid into Committees account and shall not be withdrawn except on cheques signed by the Member-Secretary.

(3)     The cheque books shall remain in the personal custody of the Member-Secretary.

Rule - 27. Permanent Advance


The Member-Secretary shall withdraw a permanent advance of rupees ten thousand to be re-couped as and when required, to meet the petty expenditure of the office of the Committee.

Rule - 28. Accounts and Audit

(1)     The Committee shall maintain proper accounts and other relevant records.

(2)     The accounts of the Committee shall be audited annually by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India or by any person appointed by him in this behalf and any expenditure incurred by him in connection with such audit shall be payable by the Committee to the Comptroller and Auditor - General of India.

(3)     The internal audit may also be carried out by the Integrated Finance Division of administrative Ministry or the internal Auditor appointed by the Committee.

(4)     The Comptroller and Auditor - General of India and any person appointed by him audit the accounts of the Committee shall have the same rights, privileges and authority in connection with such audit as the Comptroller and Auditor - General of India has in connection with the audit of Government accounts and, in particular, shall have the right to demand the production of books, accounts, connected vouchers and other documents and papers and to inspect the office of the Committee.

(5)     The audit and accounts report shall be placed before the Annual General Meeting of the Committee for consideration.

(6)     The accounts of receipts shall include a statement of all sums received by the Committee during the financial year which shall be shown under the following heads namely:-

(a)      money received from the Central Government;

(b)      processing fee received from establishments;

(c)      other moneys received by the Committee; and

(d)      interest accrued from the investment of such money as aforesaid.

(7)     The receipts shall be shown under each of the heads specified under sub-rule (6) and the opening balance shall also be stated.

(8)     The expenditure incurred during the financial year shall be shown under the following heads, namely:-

(a)      administration of the Committee including payment of salaries, travelling expenses and the like;

(b)      measures taken in connection with the functions of the Committee, each item shall be shown separately; and

(c)      miscellaneous.

(9)     The closing balance for the financial year shall be shown at the foot of the accounts on the expenditure side; and

(10)   The Committee shall maintain accounts as per the Financial Rules laid down by the Ministry of Finance.

Rule - 29. Staff of Committee

(1)     As per section 16 of the said Act, subject to the control of the Central Government, the Committee may appoint such number of officers and other employees as may be necessary to enable it to exercise its powers and perform its duties and may determine the remuneration and other terms and conditions of service of such officers and other employees.

(2)     The office of the Committee shall engage manpower as may be required by them time to time for performing its functions after taking the approval from the Committee.

Rule - 30. Expenditure for the Function of Committee

(1)     All the expenditure to be made as per General Financial Rules, laid down by the Ministry of Finance as per delegation of financial powers from time to time.

(2)     The Member-Secretary shall be empowered to incur expenditure as per the delegation of Financial Powers delegated to him from time to time with the concurrence of Integrated Finance Division and with the approval of Secretary of the administrative Ministry and in pursuance of the Delegation of Financial Power Rules, 1978.

Rule - 31. Asset


The Assets of the Committee created out with the expenditure of the Government fund to be maintained in the Committee through a register of assets.