Stray cattle snuff out 10 lives per month in Hry
KARNAL: In the last two years, nearly 10 people were killed every month due stray cattle in Haryana, reply to a Right to Information (RTI) query has revealed.
In response to Panipat-based activist PP Kapoor’s RTI query, the office of Haryana director general of police stated that total 241 people were killed in accidents related to stray cattle in the state from February 2018 to March 2020.
The official data disclosed that maximum (40) people died due to stray cattle attack in Fatehabad district, followed by 36 in Ambala, 23 each in Kaithal and Sirsa, 19 in Hisar, 16 in Panchkula 14 in Sonepat, 13 in Bhiwani, 10 in Jhajjar, nine in Karnal, seven each in Rewari and Yamunanagar, four in Kurukshetra, three in Charkhi Dadri, two each in Faridabad and Palwal and one in Panipat.
However, not a single death was reported in Rohtak, Gurugram, Jind, Nuh (Mewat) and Mahendergarh districts.
These figures have raised serious concerns over the effect of state government’s various initiatives to curb the menace.
To make cities free from stray cattle, the state government had increased the number of cow pounds (gaushalas) to over 600 from 350 in 2017.
Last year, a sum of ₹30 crore was released in the annual budget from the earlier ₹45 lakh.
However, the results of these efforts don’t seem so promising.
As per the numbers shared by
Haryana Gau Sewa Ayoga (HGSA), stray cattle population in the state increased to over 4.10 lakh from 2.60 lakh in the past two years.
Though the number of gaushalas was increased, HGSA claimed that these had limited capacity and could not accommodate over four lakh stray cattle in the state.
It added that the ban on cattle slaughter under the Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act, 2015, has resulted their increase.
HGSA chairman Bhani Ram Mangla told HT, “In the past year, they have sent 1.20 lakh cattle from roads to gaushalas in the state, but around 40,000 stray animals are on the roads still.” He said the Ayog has planned to set up small gaushalas in villages to prevent loose cattle from entering cities.
“₹5 lakh will be provided to the village panchayat by the HGSA for setting up these cow pounds,” Mangla added.