Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has thrown his weight behind gau raksha with a series of cow protection measures planned, including the establishment of state-of-the-art cow shelters—a move analysts say has clear political undertones and is aimed at broadening the Congress leader’s support base.
While the initiative, discussed at a meeting Saturday, is meant to improve livestock management and animal welfare, observers say the plan will appeal to Hindu voters.
Reddy hails from a farmer’s family in remote rural Telangana and in his younger days was associated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), aligning him briefly with the Sangh-Hindutva ideology.
“The CM’s administrative initiatives to protect cattle, probably a first from a Congress CM here, could help him reach out to Hindus who revere cows,” said R.V. Chandravadan, a retired bureaucrat, who is associated with the BJP.
Chandravadan said the police crackdown and Director General of Police (DGP) Dr Jitender’s firm tone last week—when he issued a stern warning to cow smugglers and those involved in illegal slaughter ahead of Bakrid—would “not have come without the prod or nod of the political bosses”.
The Telangana BJP welcomed Reddy’s move, but said it was the result of its pressure on successive governments to protect cows and fully enforce the ban on their slaughter, especially in Hyderabad and other places with significant minority populations.
“We welcome it. If Revanth thinks it will aid him electorally, let him. But the public knows who actually stands and fights for gau raksha,” said N.V. Subhash, senior leader and state BJP chief spokesperson.
According to sources, the chief minister’s cow protection move was prompted by the recent deaths of bovines at the Vemulawada temple, the abode of Raja Rajeshwara Swamy, a form of Lord Shiva, where devotees offer kodelu (young bulls) as thanks for their fulfilled wishes.
The chief minister called a meeting with the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) as well as animal husbandry and district officials Saturday, “pained by the alarming and continuing deaths of young oxen at the Vemulawada temple”.
In the past week, 23 young bulls have died and about 15 are in a serious condition, as vets struggle to prevent further loss of lives at the temple in Rajanna Sircilla district, represented by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K.T. Rama Rao in the Telangana assembly.
The temple, which is under the state government’s control, has a 15-acre gau shala in the nearby Tippapur village, which officials say is vastly inadequate to house the 1,350 bulls crammed there. Its capacity is a maximum of 400 cattle.
“One can imagine the conditions there. Heat waves during the summer, and then heavy rains have recently caused waterlogging, breeding of mosquitoes, etc. The young, energetic bulls, who should run, jump and graze freely, are confined in one place with fodder dumped at some spots. It is a survival-of-the-fittest situation with tender ones coming under the hoofs of robust ones,” said Dr Ravinder Reddy, district veterinary and animal husbandry officer.
“The temple receives 5-10 young bulls daily. Some devotees, to cut the costs of their mokku (offering), leave 1-1.5-year calves here, which are too tender to thrive in such testing conditions.”
While the temple usually gives away the donated uncastrated bulls to needy farmers, a local said that the distribution was halted last year after it was found that a large number of calves were handed to some individuals based on a minister’s recommendation. They were found to be misused; some allegedly were sold later for slaughter.
Vemulawada temple executive officer Vinod Reddy and district collector Sandeep Kumar Jha did not respond to ThePrint’s calls and messages seeking their response. This report will be updated if and when they respond.
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Moving cows and bulls from overcrowded spaces
A senior CMO official told ThePrint that the chief minister’s plan is to shift all such cows and bulls from overcrowded spaces in Vemulawada and other gaushalas, as well as those roaming on streets, to the soon-to-be set up shelters “in partnership with NGOs, temple committees, charitable organisations, etc”.
In the first phase, the chief minister proposes to establish cow shelters within the premises of veterinary university campuses and allied colleges, agriculture university grounds and associated colleges as well as temple precincts in the state.
Cows and young bulls seized from illegal smuggling and transportation are also expected to be sheltered in these safe houses. The slaughter of cows and productive age bulls is prohibited under various laws, including The Telangana Prohibition of Cow Slaughter and Animal Preservation Act, 1977.
“These state-of-the-art shelters will have modern sheds to shield the cattle from bad weather, proper medical facilities and, importantly, vast green pastures for natural grazing. The idea to have these centres in veterinary college campuses is based on the model of hospitals attached to medical colleges,” said the CMO official.
The chief minister suggested that cow shelters be built on sprawling 50-acre lands with ample space for grazing and free roaming to avoid congestion. He asked officials to identify suitable lands in the state for the purpose.
‘We plan to have four to five in four regions of the state, to begin with,” the official said.
Following the chief minister’s advice, a committee headed by Animal Husbandry Department Special Chief Secretary Sabyasachi Ghosh was formed earlier this week to prepare an approach paper for the establishment of cow shelters and an action plan with full budget estimates for the construction, management and upkeep of the new cow shelters.
Plans for one such shelter are already drawn up, to be built at MK Palli village in the Moinabad mandal near Hyderabad. The CM had reviewed various designs for the MK Palli shelters and suggested some changes, while instructing officials to finalise them within a week.
Police crackdown on cow smugglers
Meanwhile, as Bakrid nears, Telangana police are cracking down on illegal transportation of cattle, especially cows.
Police are conducting meetings of peace committees, cattle transporters and butchers across the state “to enlighten them about the legal requirements and consequences of illegal activities”.
“Previous offenders were bound over to ensure that they do not engage in illegal activities. Religious leaders and community elders are requested to educate their communities about the legal and ethical aspects of animal sacrifice,” DGP Jitender said in a statement Friday.
Authorities have set up round-the-clock interstate and inter-district check posts with veterinary doctors to prevent illegal transportation of cattle.
Police pickets have been set up in sensitive areas and mobile patrolling has been intensified. Authorities have also set up cattle holding centres with proper facilities and veterinarians. Close watch is being kept on shanties where cattle are sold.
“Any person trying to disturb law and order would be dealt with as per law and appropriate sheets will be opened against them,” the police chief warned, at the same time cautioning cow protection vigilantes not to take the law into their hands. “They have no authority to stop or check any vehicle. They may provide information, if any, to the local police station about the illegal transportation of animals. Such cattle and the vehicle would be seized and legal action taken on the persons involved.”
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)
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