Visakhapatnam: Cattle deaths at Simhachalam Goshala spark controversy

Visakhapatnam: The recent deaths of cows and calves at Simhachalam Goshala are sparking a controversy.

In a month, 23 calves died, including 10 in the last three days.

But the Devasthanam staff mention the reason for this is that most donors handover sick and weak animals to them and hence the calves' health continue to deteriorate further in the following weeks.

As a tradition followed for decades, several devotees donate calves to the Devasthanam when their wishes get fulfilled. However, in 2013, the Endowments Department decided to accept only indigenous breeds of cattle for donation.

But devotees continue to offer Jersey cattle due to lack of awareness on the decision made by the Endowments.

As the Devasthanam refuses to accept the donation when it's not indigenous breed, the devotees abandon the cattle downhill. Protecting such abandoned cattle turns out to be a challenging task for the temple authorities.

Some of these cows and calves die over a period of time due to various reasons such as being in a congested place, lack of medical care and upkeep.

At present, there are 500 cattle of non-indigenous breed at Goshala. Farmers who want the cattle can get them free of cost by submitting required documents to the authorities. But since this facility was abused by a section of people, the Devasthanam halted the distribution of the cattle. "Since the cows are dying one after the other, we decided to resume providing them to the farmers at the earliest. Also, we will monitor whether the cattle is being used by them or not," said MV Surya Kala, Simhachalam executive officer. She appealed to the devotees not to donate non-indigenous breeds to the temple.

The authorities concerned claimed that soon the issue will be looked into and a permanent solution will be sought for it.

However, BJP leaders and NGOs that work towards protecting animal rights point out that the cattle were dying due to the negligence of the Simhachalam Devasthanam staff.