Stray cattle menace haunts city residents

Avneet Kaur

Jalandhar, November 18

The stray cattle menace continues to be a headache for residents. The animals can be seen roaming hither and thither, causing traffic snarls. Sometimes the cattle appear all of a sudden on roads, jeopardising the lives of commuters, especially bikers.

There are around 1.1 lakh stray cattle across the state and around 300 deaths, mostly due to road mishaps, due the menace have taken place in the past six months, as per latest reports of the Punjab Gau Sewa Commission. The figures speak volumes about the apathy of the government that is still in deep slumber.

The animals feed on the garbage littered alongside roads, squat sometimes on the roads and streets, bringing the traffic to a halt.

“The stray cattle menace galores right from Chuggiti Chowk to the road that leads to the railway station. Though the officials concerned say the issue will be resovled soon, nothing concrete is visible,” said Deepak Kumar, a resident of Gobind Nagar.

Another city resident said, “It is difficult to manage the situation when you have a cow walking on the road. Neither the Municipal Corporation nor the state government are doing anything to get rid of the problem.”

People say the problem is acute at the main chowks and roads, be it Pathankot bypass, BSF Chowk, Chuggiti chowk, railway station and bus stand. Apart from causing traffic woes, the animals also leave trails of dung on the roads. Green belts, including parks, are being affected.

MC Commissioner Basant Garg said, “Concerted efforts were being made to curb the problem. Gaushalas are looking after the issue and they have deployed employees to catch stray cattle. We are liable to pay diet money to the gaushalas.”

Punjab Gau Sewa Commission chairman Kimti Bhagat said, “It is a big issue for residents. We are doing our best to resolve the issue. Policies are being framed and financial assistance has been sought from the state government for the constructions of cowsheds.”

Bhagat said the commission would soon get cowsheds constructed in every district. “We appeal to people to give up abandoning their cattle. They should take them to the nearby gaushalas,” he added.