BKU to herd cows, stray dogs to CM’s house

LUDHIANA: Upset over the ever growing menace of stray cattle and increasing population of stray dogs, the Bharti Kisan Union (BKU) has announced that the farmers would herd stray cattle and dogs to Chandigarh on March 7, 2019, where these would be handed over to Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

BKU president Ajmer Singh Lakhowal (2nd from left) addresses a meeting in Ludhiana on Sunday. Photo: Inderjeet Verma

Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, February 10

Upset over the ever growing menace of stray cattle and increasing population of stray dogs, the Bharti Kisan Union (BKU) has announced that the farmers would herd stray cattle and dogs to Chandigarh on March 7, 2019, where these would be handed over to Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

Addressing a monthly meeting of the body here today, BKU president Ajmer Singh Lakhowal said stray cattle had become a big threat to farmers as these cause immense damage to crops. Similarly, the failure of the authorities to check the increasing population of dogs has made life difficult for the people, especially those of children and elderly people.

“Failure of the government to address the problem of stray cattle is posing a huge threat to survival of dairy farming as ban on the sale of cattle and absence of slaughter houses in the state makes the farmers carry the burden of unproductive cattle,” said Lakhowal while demanding that either the government opened adequate number of slaughter houses in the state or make arrangements to export such animals to other countries in the larger interests of the state and dairy farmers.

The BKU chief said for a government which was collecting cow cess from the people, taking care of stray cattle was its constitutional and moral duty. At the same time, the menace of stray dog also needed to be effectively dealt with to ensure safety of people, he added.

He said in a bid to create awareness among the farmers for modern techniques of farming and to popularise organic farming with no chemical fertilisers and farm chemicals, the BKU would organise a series of seminars. First of these seminars would be held at Morinda on February 20, second in Sangrur on February 21, third in Ferozepur on February 22 and the concluding one in Kartarpur Sahib on February 23. Experts on the subject, scientists and economists would address these seminars.

Other speakers at the meeting, Puran Singh Shahkot, Ramkaran Singh Raman and Harinder Singh Lakhowal, criticised the Union Budget terming it as a cruel joke with the farming community.