Furry friends walk the ramp with their humans at city carnival
Times of India | 5 January 2026
Kolkata: It was a fun-filled day out for 4-legged ‘athletes' that raced, jumped, hunted food and walked on a beauty ramp at a Garden Reach playground on Sunday. A group of 40 students came together to organise the Garden Reach pet carnival, which aimed to promote coexistence and compassion between human beings and animals.
Pet parents were seen cheering for their furry babies as they took centre stage, trying out sporting activities. Koyel Das's 3-year-old golden retriever looked excited as she jumped on the ramp during the fashion show. Das said, "This Sunday was a special winter day out for my dog and she enjoyed the carnival because of varied sporting activities that are akin to what are organised by schools for children during sports meets."
Similarly, Soumi Chakraborty brought her 5-year-old male husky. "This is my pet's first time participating in a sporting event like this. It is good to see both pedigree and indie dogs and cats showcasing their sportsman spirit in these events," she said.
The pets participating in the carnival were mostly dogs, though some pet parents also brought their cats. The events lined up included long jump, ramp walk, catch the ball, treat hunt, race and zig-zag walk. Along with these play events, the carnival also had health check-ups, an awareness camp on animal cruelty and an adoption camp where 5 indie puppies got new homes on Sunday.
While the students, also members of Aguntuk Foundation, a youth-led animal welfare association in the city, organised the carnival, they got support from the social organisation Hope India Charitable Trust and a vet clinic, Pawz Planet. During the carnival, Ritobroto Mukherjee, president of Hope India Charitable Trust, unveiled a mobile application called ‘Glopaw' that connects animal lovers, pet owners, vets and rescuers on a single platform to stop animal cruelty.
"People often go for picnics and festivals but cannot give time to their pets, which feel bored and left out. We have been organising the carnival from last year to create a space where animals and humans can enjoy together," said Sayan Adhikari, a first-year Bcom student of Alipore College.
"We started this initiative three years ago to bring some change for animals and we started feeding strays with our pocket money. Last year we held the carnival on a small scale with 100 participants but this time it was bigger, with more events and an awareness camp," said Subhajit Das, a second-year student of a management college in the city.