Science is moving beyond animal testing. Why is India going backwards?

Using animal biology to model human disease has long reached its scientific and moral limits. Worldwide, progressive regulators are replacing animal experimentation with human-relevant methods that deliver faster, more reliable safety data. But India is poised to weaken statutory protections and lower ethical standards it has, ironically, demonstrated leadership in.At the centre of this regressive shift is the draft Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Control and Supervision of Experiments, Breeding and Trading of Laboratory Animals) Rules 2026. Issued by Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CCSEA) under fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying ministry, the proposed text seeks to replace foundational frameworks established in 1968 and 1998.