Chief Minister Pramod Sawant seems to have taken the issue of stray cattle very seriously. Within two months he has made two very important announcements. Speaking in Ponda he had said that 25% of road accidents occurred due to stray cattle. He announced that there will be cattle shelters in every taluka. A few days ago a government notification informed that cattle owners who have availed various cattle-related schemes will be blacklisted. As per the notification, stray cattle shall be impounded immediately by the concerned authorities and if any animal purchased under the government schemes is found to be straying then the entire subsidy will be recovered from the farmer in toto and the beneficiary will be debarred from availing such schemes in the future.
Both announcements should have brought a sense of relief to the citizens. However, even after two months of the first announcement, little has changed on the ground. On the contrary, as the rains subsided the number of cattle straying and squatting on the roads has only increased. There is probably not a single panchayat or municipality which is not affected due to the stray cattle menace.
Last week I had written in the Citizen Herald column about cattle squatting on the NH 66 near the Birla Cross junction near the Verna IDC. On Saturday night (September 14), a calf was knocked down near the petrol pump located a few metres away from the same junction (see pic).
Year after year, citizens complain and the people in power make statements. However, there is no action on the ground.
Is it the case of, all talk and no action, with the present government?