Asmita Pollji
asmita@herald-goa.com
PERNEM: The village of Naibagh in Pernem is where a unique ritual has been observed over the years. It has been common for Hindus to offer a cow to the local deity Satiyadevi, and then to worship the cow as belonging to the goddess herself until the bovine breathes its last.
While the ritual was aimed at giving the cow pride of place, the present day scenario is quite the opposite. At least 50 bovines that were offered to the goddess can now be found loitering on the roads of Naibagh throughout the day and night. They show signs of abandonment and are essentially left to fend for themselves, posing a daily risk to motorists who frequently collide into them.
Similar is the case of milch cows and those used for farming that have aged and have since lost their productivity. No longer keen on caring for them, dairy farmers and agriculturists clandestinely release them from the sheds, causing them to wander onto roadsides for food and a place to rest. The shift from traditional to mechanised modes of farming has only exacerbated the problem as a tractor can now do more efficiently what a bullock-drawn plough would once take weeks to achieve.
As a result, not only the hinterlands of Pernem taluka, but also its coastal villages and the NH 66 that traverses through it have been plagued by the stray cattle menace. Bovine road fatalities are common as are serious injuries to motorists who unwittingly collide into herds of cattle sitting right is the middle of busy roads, especially during the night when visibility is poor.
Like in Ponda, the stray cattle issue is regularly brought up at gram sabhas, but action by the authorities is not very forthcoming. Although some panchayats have tagged cattle in a bid to identify their owners, hardly any initiative is taken to penalise owners whose cattle are found to be loitering.
“There is urgent need for cattle shed in Pernem. Since the taluka abounds with farmers, there are also many bovines. Therefore, if a single panchayat cannot afford to build a cow shed, two or three panchayats should come together and build a single cattle shed. The local authorities need to take serious action on this front,” Rupesh Naik, a local, says.
Sources say that although the Pernem Municipal Council has a shelter for abandoned cattle, budget constraints and lack of manpower has caused the shelter to be inactive for a long time.
