Amidst rising incidents of accidents due to stray cattle, the Chief Minister has recently made a statement that all talukas need to establish goshalas and sign MoUs with local civic bodies inorder to transform Goa in a accident-free zone. Looks like that all this amounts to just lip service as stray bovines still rule the roads in Siolim. Hundreds of cows loiter the village, destroy fields and squat on the road at nights.The village gram sabhas just pass resolutions everytime but fail to implement in letter and spirit. There are High Court guidelines to impound stray cattle and hand them over to goushalas which are violated by the civic body too.
As the bovines squat on the potholed-ridden roads where most streetlights are in darkness, it leads to accidents and sometimes fatal. It is reportedly learnt that 25 per cent of the deaths on the road are due to stray cattle. When will the village panchayats learn their lessons? Are we waiting for another death to occur inorder to act?
If the government holds dog owners liable for attacks on humans then it is time that the authorities should hold ward members in particular and the village panchayat in general liable for mishaps or fatal accidents that occur to stray cattle squatting on the roads. After all it is criminal negligence on their part for failing to act against strays. Let better counsel prevail