Sent from G.L. Simmons
9 Aug 1955
Description:

'EC.1601/5/1

...

2. You will, of course, appreciate that the decision on the part of the Government of India to introduce a licensing procedure arose from the delicate associations involved on account of the place of the monkey in Hindu mythology and to the Indian Government's desire that exporting arrangements should be carried out under proper conditions. With all countries becoming interested in polio vaccine, there has been a boom in monkey exports and conditions have deteriorated, so we understand.

3. The Medical Research Council have drawn up, in common with other interested organisations here, a set of recommendations on the humane transport of monkeys by air which the United Kingdom air transport intend to adopt, and which the Council is giving a fairly wide circulation, e.g. they have passed the recommendations to the United States Embassy here and will be sending copies to interested organisations in the United States. They have also sent copies to the Indian Medical Research Council, and we are passing copies to the Indian Ministry of Commerce with the information that we will be adopting, so far as our own imports of monkeys are concerned, these recommendations.

4. As Canada is also interested in exporting monkeys from India for polio vaccine research, we feel that the Canadian Government might be interested to know of these recommendations, and I accordingly enclose two copies which you might care to pass to the appropriate department. In no sense is there any suggestion that the Canadians should also adopt them, although it is quite possible that they might wish to go in for something on similar lines.'