Petitioner Amrit Singh is a member of PETA.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: An Indian American man in upstate New York is requesting that the state’s government permit him to temporarily install a tombstone on the side of a road, as a memorial for 11 cows who tragically perished in a truck accident in Albany last week.
Amrit Singh is the man behind such a petition. Singh is a member of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which would front the costs for the tombstone and installing it by the side of the road. Singh is asking that the tombstone stand for just one month, but has not yet heard any word from the government that it’s willing to allow it.
The accident in question occurred one week ago, involving a two-level 18-wheeler truck that careened off the Rock Road, at the intersection of Switzkill Road. The driver of the truck, along with one passenger, was not at all harmed in the crash, but 11 cows lost their lives. This intersection is where the tombstone would stand.
“This tribute will let commuters know that the best way to prevent tragedies such as this one is to go vegan, because cows shouldn’t have to make terrifying trips to feedlots and slaughterhouses at all,” said Singh’s letter, according to local ABC News 10.
The letter was addressed to Darrell Duncan, head of the Albany County Department of Public Works. In it, Singh also said that she hopes a large tombstone memorial would warn drivers of the danger of tractor trailer crashes, and lead to better driving practices around the city and county.
“The memorial will also help prevent future accidents and make the roads safer for everyone by reminding tractor-trailer drivers of their responsibility to the thousands of animals they haul every year as well as to the motorists whose lives are endangered when a tractor-trailer crashes,” said the letter.