The history of the Calcutta slaughterhouses shows the dilemma of colonial as well as post-colonial governments in handling the unsatisfactory condition of the slaughterhouses and the barbarous practice of flaying animals. This paper argues how the animal rather than man became a crucial agent in the colonial government in the urban history of Calcutta. Despite the legal deterrents, the pathetic conditions of the slaughterhouses in West Bengal continue and the lackadaisical attitude of the post-colonial government persists even today.
