Twenty trucks transporting 234 cattle from Erode to Karnataka were seized by the police and an animal rights organisation here on Thursday.
Traders purchase the buffalo from a shandy in Erode and sell it in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
It is said that the cattle were transported under inhumane conditions without adhering to the guidelines mentioned under Transportation of Animals Rules.
On a tipoff, members of the animal rights’ organisation and the police intercepted the truck road in Pallipalayam Junction Road on the Coimbatore – Salem National Highway. Inquiries revealed that the cattle were for butchering. The trucks were overloaded with cattle and no fodder was available for feeding the cattle.
Also, certificate from veterinarians for transporting the cattle was not issued. The cattle were rescued and taken to the Goshala in Tiruchi on Friday.
The police have registered a case against the drivers under Section 11 (i) (d) (2) (b) of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, r/w 428 and 429 of IPC, under Sections 96 and 97 of Transport of Animal Rules, 1978 and under Section 4 (iii) (a) of Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act, 1958.
All the 20 drivers have been lodged at Salem Central Prison.
