Open house: What steps should be taken to contain stray menace?

Councillors should take responsibility

It is sad that the stray cattle menace is getting out of proportions. Quite often, two-wheelers and even cars meet with accidents due to stray cattle in which precious lives are lost. The local councillors should be made responsible for curbing the menace. They can form sub-committees to shift stray cattle to gaushalas which can be funded by the MC or the MP concerned from his MPLAD fund.

NPS Sohal, Chandigarh

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Only awareness won't help

There is a shortage of trained man power with the MC to catch stray cattle. The tendency of the civic bodies of neighbouring towns and cities to catch stray cattle and abandon these outside their municipal limits is like sweeping your own house clean and leaving the garbage in front of the next house. Also, there is a lack of cooperation from the public. The MC should employ a strong cattle-catching squad. More cowsheds should be constructed and sufficient staff should be employed to take care of cattle there.

VINEET GANDHI, Chandigarh

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QUESTION

The UT Administration recently set up a committee to prepare a plan for the development of villages. Keeping in view the growing population of villages, should the Administration regularise construction undertaken outside the lal dora?

Suggestions in not more than 70 words can be sent to [email protected]

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Coordination among cities needed

To rid the city of the stray menace, coordination among the tricity authorities is a must. Stray cattle wander into the city limits from neighbouring areas. A helpline number of the MC must be functional round the clock on which residents can call to inform about stray cattle wandering in their respective sectors. Those animals must be shifted to cow shelters. If an animal belongs to someone, then the owner must be fined.

Simran Sidhu, Chandigarh

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Build more cow shelters

Stray animal menace has increased manifold in our tricity, resulting in not only unhygienic conditions in parks and roads but also accidents. The need of the hour is to set up shelters for stray animals, including stray dogs, for the safety of public at large. Our aim should be to keep the tricity clean and green. At the same time, the owners of domestic animals be challaned heavily if the latter are found on roads and in public places.

Col TBS Bedi (retd), Mohali

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No concrete steps have been taken

New deadlines for eradicating the stray menace are fixed every year by the administration and the civic authorities but no concrete steps are taken on the ground. Hundreds of commuters continue to face problems due to stray cattle roaming around almost everywhere. It is a well-documented fact that hundreds of lives are lost every year due to stray cattle on roads. Both the administration and cattle owners are responsible for this chaos on roads. The administration should impose a heavy fine on erring cattle owners and take action against officials concerned for negligence to make a difference on the ground.

Dr Dinesh Kumar Verma, Panchkula

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Don't feed cattle on roads

The stray cattle menace has taken an alarming proportion in the entire tricity. Cattle roaming on highways pose a great risk to motorists. There are many gaushalas in the vicinity of the tricity cattle from which are put out for grazing during the morning and evening - the peak traffic hours. Many accidents occur as drivers take a sudden turn to save stray cattle. The Administration announced projects to eradicate this menace but abandoned them midway due to their poor implementation. Barricades need to be installed on both sides of vulnerable roads such as the Chandigarh-Baddi road, Panchkula -Naraingarh road and the Mohali -Kharar road. Radium collars should be put around the neck of stray animal to prevent accidents during the night. A fine imposed on careless cattle owners as a deterrent can be helpful. Sufficient grazing area should be made available near gaushalas. There should be proper signage warning drivers against stray cattle. The public should refrain from feeding cattle or throwing edible things on roads.

YASH KHETARPAL, Panchkula

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Involve public to catch strays

To solve this problem, the public should be involved in catching strays and each person paid Rs500 per animal. Municipal committees should be asked to take charge of the animals caught by residents after spot payment on a daily basis. The public should be given protection for catching stray animals. Even 90% pet dogs are not registered in the tricity. Stray cattle feeding should be made a punishable criminal offence in the MC Act.

Ashok Kumar Goel, Panchkula

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officials should supervise task

The stray cattle menace has not been addressed for many years, thanks to MC officials' negligent behaviour in UT. Moreover, the Administration has to sincerely coordinate with Panchkula and Mohali to prevent the entry of stray cattle in the UT area. The cattle caught by MC officials be sent to gaushalas and a heavy penalty imposed on their owners. There has been several fatal accidents caused by stray cattle roaming on roads and streets. The menace can be mitigated only when senior officials themselves supervise the task.

MR Bhateja, Nayagaon

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Strays a common sight in Mohali

Unchecked movement of stray cattle from Mohali side is a nuisance on the city roads. Motorists have to apply sudden brakes to avoid a collision with strays on busy roads. Animals abruptly coming on road cause accidents. Such scenes are quite common in Mohali. The municipal authorities of Chandigarh and Mohali should emulate Panchkula in controlling the menace by taking action against the careless owners of stray cattle so as to make driving safe on roads.

SC Luthra, Chandigarh

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Cattle sheds need of the hour

It is impossible to stop cattle entering one city from the other. Cattle sheds should be built and stray animals shifted there. The owners who come to claim their cattle should be fined. These cattle can be put up for adoption by villagers. Residents can be encouraged to feed cattle in sheds citing astrological remedies or faith in religion.

Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali

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Motorists are always at risk

I live in Panchkula extension and one can spot stray cattle all over. It becomes more dangerous at night as black cattle are not easily visible in the dark. Motorists are always at risk of meeing with accidents on NH7 where traffic remains heavy and fast. Precious human lives are lost in such accidents. Also boards should be put up with info as to who to contact in case one spots stray cattle. There is a need for enhanced coordination between the general public and the MC authorities. Awareness drives need to be carried out especially in schools. More animal pounds need to be built.

Sanjeev Bishnoi, Panchkula

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Start a joint campaign

This is astonishing that in the name of animal protection, safeguarding animals seems to be overpowering the safety of humans. One can witness pack of stray dogs in every street of the tricity posing a danger to passers-by. These strays are a potential traffic hazard. The administration is making lame excuses in the name of animal protection or blaming neighbouring areas for the problem. Killing is not the only solution to get rid of stray dongs. The tricity should start a joint campaign to stop the breeding of dogs.

Surinder Paul Wadhwa, Mohali

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Provide proper shelters

Vets and NGOs should make honest efforts to contain the menace because it is a serious problem. The tricity authorities are not making geniune efforts to solve it. Cattle owners should be allotted land on lease for a stipulated period. Cattle must be registered while strays should be identified and moved to such places.

Anita K Tandon, Kharar

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Allocate funds for cow sheds

Government funds need to be allocated for the construction of cow sheds in the city as most of the stray animals are cows. The cow cess should be carefully spent by the civic authorities for the running of these sheds. The sterilisation of stray dogs should be carried out. The public should come forward to ensure the success of such programmes.

Nakhpreet Kaur, Sanghol

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Southern sectors of UT most affected

Accidents involving stray animals and dog-bite cases are going on unabated in the tricity. The local authorities are charging various levies, taxes and now cow cess etc. on the pretext of better facilities but do little to save human lives. Animals are dying in the so-called cow shelters because of the irresponsible attitude of the authorities concerned. The respective commissioners and mayors should be held responsible for any human death due to stray animals, including dogs, followed by the respective enforcement wings for their collective failure in discharging their duty. The southern sectors of the city are most affected by this menace. This lethargic approach of the authorities must end.

Suresh Verma, Chandigarh

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It should be joint responsibility

To tackle the problem of stray cattle it should be the joint responsibility of the tricity authotrities. One should not blame the other for cattle entering cities from the neighbouring areas. If these creatures of God had some brain, then this problem would not have occurred. One of the solutions is that one can feed a stray animal at the same time every day and after three or four days it can be caught and sent to some proper animal shed. Also, one must be sympathetic to these creatures in the same way as we treat patients from the neighbouring states.

Savita Kuthiala, Chandigarh

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Need to find a lasting solution

Even as the Chandigarh Administration make tall claims of having addressed the menace of stray cattle, it continues to haunt commuters from across Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali. The lack of coordination among the tricity authorities blaming each other for the mess appears to be the crux of the problem. Stray cattle, besides jeopardising lives of residents, end up hampering a smooth flow of the vehicular traffic, while the administration resorts to piecemeal measures to resolve the problem. What is more worrying is that many lives have been lost in raging attacks by these unsuspecting bovine neighbours turning rogues on the roads at times. In order to effectively check the menace more cattle pounds are required to be constructed. Periodic sterilisation drives may go a long way to check their ever-burgeoning population.

Ramesh K Dhiman, Chandigarh

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Identify the owners of animals

To contain the stray menace in Chandigarh, the Administration should come up with a plan to identify the owners of animals, particularly cows, so that erring owners could be punished. The farmers or cow owners should be given some relief for taking care of these cows. The cow cess should be used to provide financial assistance to institutions engaged in the welfare of cows. The government should provide funds to build more gaushalas. Municipal corporations should keep a regular check on the population of stray cattle. The UT authorities should make a proper coordination with their neighbourhood counterparts to curb the menace.

Adish Sood, Amloh

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more gaushalas can help address issue

In spite of collection of huge funds on account of cow cess, the MC authorities are not able to use these to feed cattle at gaushalas. If properly fed, these animals will not be let loose on roads to feed. These animals often bring the flow of traffic on busy roads to a standstill besides causing major road accidents. The situation turns worse at night when it becomes difficult for drivers to spot stray animals. These animals, mostly cows come from illegal roadside dairies and cattle sheds. The solution lies in relocating dairies outside the cities. There is a need to build huge gaushalas at appropriate locations.

Sanjay Chopra, Mohali

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Money going into wrong hands

Despite many measures having been taken and much money spent on gaushalas and cattle shelters, the menace of stray cattle on roads continues, endangering vehicles and lives of people. Money collected on account of cow cess and donations for cows certainly goes into wrong hands. A strict watch on the use of funds given for cattle and holding gaushalas managers accountable can be one step towards the solution.

Bubby Soin, Chandigarh

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Need to fix responsibility

The stray menace is getting worse day by day in the tricity. The lack of coordination among authorities and fixing responsibilities of administrative staff is to blame for the menace. Many people have lost their lives in accidents involving stray cattle. There is a need to catch stray animals and impose a hefty fine on erring owners, or else shift these to shelters. A lot of amount in the form of cess is collected by the respective governments but the number of stray animals keeps on increasing day by day. The money collected for the cause must be used to contain the menace.

Wg Cdr (Dr) JS Minhas (retd), Mohali

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Need for launching area-wise drives

The stray cattle menace continues to pose a threat to the public in Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula. So many accidents have happened due to stray cattle. There is no coordination among the tricity authorities. These authorities claim too much but do nothing. They keep on blaming each other. They should frame a sub-committee to solve the problem. There is a need to build more shelters for stray cattle (cows and dogs).

Sumesh Kumar Badhwar, Mohali.

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Set up more cow shelters in villages

Stray cows are one of the reasons behind accidents in the city. When a cow stops giving milk its owner abandons it. The authorities should tie up with NGOs and the department concerned and to set up more cow shelters where people can give donations and food. A monthly report should be published in one local newspaper and one state newspaper about the data of cow shelters.

Avinash Goyal, Chandigarh

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Problem spreading to more areas

The menace has resurfaced in various parts of the tricity. Food leftovers and leaves dumped by restaurants, marriage halls and roadside eateries have been the main source of food for stray cattle roaming on roads. These hinder the free movement of traffic. Many accidents have been caused by to these cattle on the main roads of the tricity. There should be a coordinated approach by the administration to get rid of the menace. Owners of these cattle should be sensitised to the problem. The other option could be shifting stray cattle to sheds built exclusively for them. Despite collection of crores annually as cow cess by the governments, the municipal corporations have failed to rein in stray cattle.

Dr Anil Kumar Yadav, Chandigarh

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Recruit more animal catchers

Loss of human lives is often reported in accidents involving stray cattle and commuters. Strict measures are required to curb the movement of stray cattle across the tricity. A combined effort of all three administrations is required to control it. More catching staff should be recruited and the capacity of cattle pounds increased. A heavy penalty should be imposed on careless owners of cattle. They should be sensitised to the fatal accidents caused by their animals.

Bharat Bhushan Sharma, Chandigarh

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CURB STRAY CATTLE MENACE

Residents of the tricity are grappling with the problem of stray cattle. These stray cattle come from unauthorised roadside dairies and cattle sheds. These cause traffic jams and fatal accidents. The menace is never taken seriously. The municipal authorities seem reluctant to contain the problem and cattle catchers are scared of catching strays. The license of an erring dairy or cattle shed should be cancelled in case their cattle are found on roads. The water and power supply to illegal dairies must be disconnected. Also, careless cattle owners must be fined suitably. The MC should employ strong cattle catchers, build more cattle sheds and employ sufficient staff to take care of these animals.

Dr Shruti K Chawla, Chandigarh

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MCs need to be penalised

When cows stop producing milk, their owners abandon them, unmindful of what danger these animals pose to humanity. Stray cattle can be spotted on all important roads and markets. The authorities concerned wake up from their deep slumber only after something untoward has happened. Containing the problem is not only the responsibility of officials of civic bodies but also cattle owners. The erring persons should all be penalised.

SK Khosla, Chandigarh