A portable device developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) for the Animal Husbandry Department, which can easily lift and provide support to injured heavy animals such cows and buffalos, and help them into standing position for rescue/treatment purposes, is becoming a life-saver for many farmers in the State.
The device has undergone extensive field trials and has been found to be extremely reliable, safe, and useful, M.C. Kartha, Project Manager, Health Informatics division, C-DAC, says.
Orders placedThe department has already given orders for six more devices for equipping its district veterinary hospitals, he adds.
The R&D project had been taken up by the C-DAC following enquiries from the Animal Husbandry Department about developing a device which could lift up large animals weighing up to 500 kg to a standing position, without distressing them too much. Veterinary surgeons often found it difficult to treat injured or pregnant cows and buffalos as the animals would have fallen in a position from which it cannot stand up on its own.
It was impossible to lift these animals without causing injuries. If the animal is not mobilised within 24 hours, impaired blood circulation could result in its developing complications and dying eventually.
On an average, the department used to receive at least 200 distress calls a month from various parts of the State.
“We studied how cattle rescue operations are conducted in New Zealand and Australia where they use slings attached to bulldozers to lift the animals. But we needed something that could be operated with the minimum manpower and fuss in our rural settings,” Mr. Kartha says.
The device developed by the C-DAC is a portable one in stainless steel, which can be assembled or dismantled in 15 minutes and can be transported in small vehicles such as jeep through rough terrain.
Two persons can easily operate the device.
The device is extremely safe, causes no injury to animals, is corrosion-resistant and can be operated on uneven or marshy grounds as it has a wide foot area.
It cost only Rs.2.25 lakh to develop and at every stage, suggestions from vets and field staff were incorporated to make it as effective as possible.
The C-DAC has applied for patenting the device.
