![]() In UP, instances of people locking up cows and bulls in school and hospital buildings have been reported. This has resulted in farmers abandoning their cattle in droves, giving rise to a massive stray cattle problem that has hit headlines in recent weeks. While that has made it difficult for them to afford the upkeep of their livestock, the ban on cattle slaughter in several states, combined with the lethal vigilantism of cow protection gangs, have meant a complete collapse of the market for cattle, and in turn, their commercial value. With many parts experiencing agrarian distress, farmers are under financial stress from their main vocation. An extraordinary situation is prevailing in rural India with regard to livestock. “Just one chance will be enough for the cattle to destroy my entire crop,” says Malkhe Shrevaas, a farmer from Mahui. About 300 km to the west, at Mahui in Bundelkhand, villagers have a roster for night guard duties and have built watch towers (machaans) to keep an eye on stray cattle. Mooradev Gram Pradhan Ramesh Sahni himself has lost half his mustard crop. In Mooradev, a few kilometres from Sarai Dangri, at least 150 abandoned cows and bulls roam the streets, damaging multiple crops and attacking and injuring children. Stories like Patel’s are aplenty in Uttar Pradesh. And if everybody else was doing it to make ends meet, why not him, Patel asks. Keeping the cows and the calves was beyond my means,” he says. Standing on his two acres of land that sports a fresh crop of bright yellow mustard flowers, the lanky farmer explained the wrenching experience of having to choose between feeding your children and feeding the cattle. Sarai Dangri is about a dozen kilometres south of Varanasi, and the Ganga flows serenely on the south and east. “It was not easy but when others are letting loose their domestic animals who are destroying our crops, why should I keep them?” he asks. After the disaster, Patel, too, set his animals free. But tragedy struck in mid-2018 when herds of abandoned cattle, roaming the streets of Sarai Dangri, entered his agricultural land and destroyed a standing wheat crop. The bull was Shankar, the calves Purba and Chhote. Patel had fondly named his cows Radha and Bholi. Apart from his four children, he also owned two cows, a bull and a pair of calves. ![]() Ramnath Patel, a 47-year-old farmer from Sarai Dangri village in eastern Uttar Pradesh, had a largish family six months back.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |