Over 31,000 stray cattle in Himachal Pradesh: govt

Himachal Pradesh government today told the Assembly that there were over 31,000 stray cattle in the state which have been abandoned by their owners as they had become unproductive.
Panchayati Raj and Rural development minister Anil Sharma said that the government is working out ways to manage them.
Replying to a question, Sharma, who also holds the charge of Animal Husbandry department, said the highest number of 10,805 stray cattle were in Kangra district, followed by Shimla (5,114), Kullu (3353) and Mandi (2578).
He said that a cattle census conducted in 2014 had shown that the number of stray cattle had gone down by 14 per cent since 2007 in the state.

"Registration of cattle was being done in panchayats, but the identification of the stray cattle was very difficult and not cost effective," he said.
Sharma said that while the locals abandon animals, there had also been a trend that some people bring truck loads of stray cattle from Punjab and dump them in the border areas of Himachal which is a "serious issue".

The minister said that even before the High Court issued directions in respect of stray animals, the state government had formulated a policy for stray cattle with provision of 76 cow shed run by NGOs and one managed by government.

The policy also envisaged involvement of religious institutions for earmarking 10 per cent of temples income for the upkeep of stray cattle.
Sharma said as per the High Court order, the Police was enforcing the anti cow slaughter Act and eight cases were registered by the police after January 1, 2014 in Kinnaur district alone while 158 cases of cruelty against animals had been registered.