How cruel can we be?

How low can we sink? How cruel can we be? I learned recently that the spiny tailed lizard or ‘sanda’ (Scientific name – Uromastyx hardwickii); found primarily in UP, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Pakistan, is boiled alive in oil because it’s fat is said to have medicinal value. And no, it doesn’t end there. In order to prevent these tiny creatures (the males grow up to 415 mm and the females grow up to 375 mm) from escaping from their ordeal in the boiling oil, they are often starved for a number of days and their backs are broken. This is the 21^st century? This is where parts of our country stand? It’s said that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Tell me, of what use is an increasing GDP or a rise in standards of living if we cannot instill in our brethren the thing that makes man the highest of all living beings? Who is a human if he is not humane?