The death of 21 cows in a gosala (cow shed) has thrown light on the need to set up a regulatory board to monitor such sheds. The cattle reportedly died after consuming ‘Bombay ravva’ on the premises of Vijayawada Gosamrakshana Sangham at One Town.
Gosalas should be brought under the ambit of a regulatory board under the supervision of Revenue or Animal Husbandry departments, according to officials.
The government should make it mandatory for caretakers to secure licence from the departments concerned and renew it twice a year, they said. The licence should be renewed only after officials from the departments concerned visit gosalas and examine the facilities provided to cattle. This initiative will enable the government to ensure cleanliness, a senior official said, adding that the death of cows was owing to the caretakers’ failure to monitor the feed.
Besides the gosala at One Town, there are three other facilities at Tadepalle in Guntur, Pedmuthevi and Indrakeeladri. “In order to prevent the incident that occurred at One Town gosala, a regulatory body is essential,” a senior official said.
Veterinary Assistant Surgeon Dr. T. Sai Gopal said dry powder or paddy straw, weighing four to five kilograms, should be fed to each animal everyday.
Green fodder, ranging between 20 kg and 25 kg should be fed to each animal twice along with 60 to 90 litres of water. Concentration mixture consisting of groundnuts cake, maize, millets, rice bran could also be fed to cattle based on the production status (milk production or pregnancy), he said.
He said the gosala caretakers should take necessary to administer vaccine to cattle to protect them from foot and mouth disease.
Govt. should make it mandatory for caretakers to secure licence and renew it twice a year, say officials
