A woman who travelled by a Delhi-Mumbai flight with her three cats met with a rude shock on landing in the city, when the airline staff informed her that one of her cats is missing.
The 39-year-old creative director travelled business class by AI flight on Aug 25 after a stay with family. She had ensured that the cats, who were to travel in the cargo section, were in secure crates.
The Juhu resident said she suspects her cat went missing at Mumbai airport as the airline staff at Delhi had sent her photos of carefully loaded crates in the cargo. Also, on landing, she had found the locks of two of her crates tampered with. In Mumbai, staff told her that one cage was open and they could not find the animal. “No protocol seemed to be in place. The airline should have alerted the ground staff and security personnel at the airport,” she said.
She claimed that the CISF personnel were unaware of the incident. The two-year-old cat was rescued along with its siblings from the street. She requested that they immediately check the CCTV, but did not get co-operation. When she asked for a missing pet report from them, she was given only a ‘pilferage’ report. Her email to the airline has not received a response.
However, she received a response from BJP leader cum animal activist Maneka Gandhi. She has asked an official to look into the matter and find the cat. It has now been three days since the cat went missing.
When contacted, an Air India spokesperson said that the airline takes utmost care and concern while carrying pets onboard. “Air India has been carrying numerous pets over the years to domestic as well as foreign stations. It is a rare unfortunate incident where the pet was somehow found missing. Our airport teams have launched a massive search operation,” he said.
Anyone who finds the cat who has a yellow collar on is promised a reward of Rs. 10,000. Contact: 9029376486
