Express News Service

Mumbai, April 23: The World¹s largest animal NGO, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) on Wednesday decided they wanted a piece of the Sars-generated publicity.

So four 20-something campaign coordinators were despatched to Sahar International Airport on Wednesday to tell travellers headed for Singapore that they should steer clear of pigs.

What you touch and inhale may be crucial, but what you pick up with your fork is even more so, believes PETA.

³In response to news reports that the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic now spreading across the globe probably originated on a pig farm, PETA is offering Œsimple but effective¹ advice about how to prevent this and other life-threatening diseases like heart attacks and cancer: Leave the animals alone and stop eating meat,² said Bijal Vachharajani, campaigns coordinator for PETA.

PETA passed out masks reading, ³Say No to Pig Farm Germs-Go Vegetarian,² to passengers travelling to Singapore, in front of the airport.

According to Mazhar Mansuri, a passenger travelling to another destination, ³It¹s really nice to have campaigns like this, but the big question is how far all this will help.²

But awareness is of, course essential. Informs Vachharajani, ³No more meat means no more factory farms and no more outbreaks of diseases spread by intensively-raised animals.²

Airport authorities preferred to stay tight-lipped about the whole thing and many other passers-by remained immune.