New Delhi: Today, in time for Republic Day, Hollywood actor Alicia Silverstone teamed up with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India to provide delicious vegan desi food to HIV-positive orphans from Bhagini Nivedita Pratishthan in Sangli, students from Ramswaroop Chameli Devi Memorial Junior High School in Bulandshahr, and children with learning disabilities from Pruthvi Women and Rural Development Organisation in Gundlupet. These youngsters enjoyed the tasty lunches after taking a tour to meet to rescued cows, goats, sheep, camels, and other animals at Animal Rahat's beautiful sanctuaries in Gundlupet, Ranapur, and Sangli. The animals were rescued from various hardships, including being used for gruellinglabour or in circuses, or were slated to be sacrificed, would have been abandoned by dairies, or faced other horrific fates.

I love children! And sharing yummy vegan food with them is the perfect way to showcase how rich and flavourful meals are when we leave animals in peace, says Silverstone, a vegan of many years who has raised her strapping son, Bear, vegan. India is such a magical place, and I'm happy to help PETA India celebrate Republic Day with Animal Rahat by treating children to a visit they'll never forget and a healthy and delicious vegan meal that saves lives.

Republic Day is a time to celebrate the many gifts India has given the world, including a phenomenal variety of delectable animal-free dishes that make it so easy to live vegan and show respect for all living, feeling beings, says PETA India Vice President of Celebrity and Public Relations Sachin Bangera. PETA India is delighted to be working with Alicia Silverstone to foster kindness and compassion for all among the next generation by distributing vegan meals to children visiting the Animal Rahat sanctuaries for rescued animals.

India is admired worldwide for its cultural reverence for animals. The Sanskrit phrase VasudhaivaKutumbakam means that the world is one family, andthe Constitution of Indiarequires citizens to have compassion for animals. And when non-vegans learn that the egg industry confines billions of chickens to cages so small they cannot even spread a wing, that trillions of fish are suffocated or slit open while they're still alive so humans can consume their flesh, or that most calves are torn away from their mothers shortly after birth and many of them are killed just so that humans can steal the milk that was meant for them, many reject this violence by consuming exclusively vegan foods.

Unsurprisingly, India has the largest vegetarian population in the world (39% of the public) because of religious or cultural reasons as well as concerns over animal welfare, the negative environmental impact of animal farming, and the increase in rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

A staggering75% of the population in India along with most of the world is lactose intolerant (unable to properly digest lactose). Studies have shown that consuming dairy can contribute to heart disease, various reproductive cancers like colon and breast cancer, obesity, and other serious ailments.

According to areportby the United Nations which identifies animal agriculture as a leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions a global move towards vegan eating is necessary to combat the climate catastrophe, andUniversity of Oxfordresearchers found that ditching meat and dairy can slash one's carbon footprint from food by 73%.

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Ahead of R-Day, Alicia Silverstone provides schoolchildren with Vegan Meals and Cow Hugs - The Northlines