Groups running cow shelters hail govt move
THE CHAIRMAN OF LUCKNOWBASED SHRI LAKSHMAN GAUSHALA, PRABHU JALAN, SAID THE NEW RULES WOULD HELP IN TACKLING RAMPANT CATTLE THEFT AND SMUGGLING
LUCKNOW The Centre’s decision to ban the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter has elicited a positive response from organisations running cow shelters, which have termed it as an “appropriate step” in the “right direction”.
The chairman of Lucknowbased Shri Lakshman Gaushala, Prabhu Jalan, said the new rules would help in tackling rampant cattle theft and smuggling.
“Undoubtedly this is an appropriate step in the right direction, and should have been implemented long ago. This will also help in better handling of the stray cattle,” he said.
He said instead of selling cattle in the market, a mechanism should be developed and efforts made so that people can adopt the cattle which would help build a bond between humans and animals.
Kumar Ashok Pandey, the founding chairman of Sanatan Brahma Foundation, an organisation which runs a cow shelter in in eastern UP’s Sant Kabir Nagar, was of the view that this decision would help in arresting cattle slaughter.
“Once when I was in Bareilly, I saw at least 100 cows being taken in a truck. After we chased it for a while, the driver fled, leaving behind the vehicle. We were aghast to see that a number of cows had suffered injuries,” he claimed.
Pandey also alleged that SUVs were being used to transport beef. “This practice was rampant in a number of western UP districts including Aligarh, Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur and Meerut,” he claimed.
The environment ministry has notified the stringent Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
According to the notification, the member secretary of an animal market committee will have to ensure that no person brings a young animal to the animal market.
“No person shall bring cattle to an animal market unless upon arrival he has furnished a written declaration signed by the owner of the cattle - stating the name and address of the owner of the cattle, with a copy of the photo identification proof. NASHIK: In just a decade, farmers in Nashik’s Shivde village, 161km from Mumbai, have scripted a success story for themselves.
This village of grape growers on an average produces 1,000 tonnes of global quality table grapes that get exported to Europe, through direct purchase agreements with big companies.
On an average, farmers here earn ~8 lakh to ~9 lakh from an acre of vineyard, and for many families annual returns from the land they own is up to ~25 lakh to ~30 lakh. But, 85 of these farming households now stand to lose their vineyards, and their hard earned successes.
The state government’s ~46,000-crore ambitious Mumbai-Nagpur super communication highway runs through the heart of approximately 80 to 132 acres of irrigated fields, most of them vineyards. If the highway is built, it will swallow the lush vineyards, vegetable gardens and 70 natural wells that supply water to at least 240 acres of land on both sides of this bowl shaped village.
And, Shivde won’t be the only village hit. Four other villages in the Nashik district — Pandhurli, Sonambe, Konambe, Sonari — where small grape farmers like Vilas Harak have turned around their fortunes now stand to lose their vineyards.
“We are small farmers here, with average land holdings of 1 to 2 acres and in some cases even less. We have been growing grapes for the past 40 years, but over the past decade, the village started exporting grapes through direct agreements made with Sahyadri Farms and Mahindra Agri Solutions. To ensure global quality produce, we have had to invest substantially in drip irrigation, better farming techniques and intensive labour,” said Vilas Rambhau Harak, who will lose 3 acres of land to the highway.
“The government hasn’t helped in this journey, but it