After being diagnosed with COVID-19, Surendran and his entire family from ward 15 of Kanjikuzhy grama panchayat in Alappuzha were admitted to a hospital in Cherthala a few days ago.
He left his cow and her newborn calf at a shed on his house premises with no one to look after.
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His concerns, however, were short-lived as the cow and calf were shifted to an animal daycare centre run by the Kanjikuzhy grama panchayat on Saturday.
The animals will be taken care of by the local body until Surendran and members of his family return home and fully recover.
A person in charge of the centre milks the cow and the amount from the milk sold will be handed over to Surendran.
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Second wave
The animal daycare centre launched at the beginning of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in April is turning out to be a second home for many cattle in Kanjikuzhy. It ensures that the livelihood of dairy farmers is not interrupted while they recover from the disease.
“We launched the centre to help dairy farmers suffering from COVID-19. If the entire family is under quarantine, there will be no one to look after their cattle. They cannot feed or milk cows. The cattle, mostly milch cows, belonging to such families are brought to the centre. The animals are provided fodder and are treated well. At the centre, the entire costs are borne by the grama panchayat and Milma,” says T.N. Viswanathan, convener, animal daycare centre, Kanjikuzhy.
Around 25 cattle have been looked after at the centre so far. The management of the centre lies with a committee comprising the panchayat authorities, a veterinary doctor and representatives of dairy farmers. Functioning at a facility owned by Sambavan, a dairy farmer in Kanjikuzhy, it can house 12 cattle at a time.
Buoyed by the response to the initiative, the local body is planning to set up a permanent animal daycare centre for all domestic animals.
“Once ready, families going on tour or long trips could leave their pets and livestock at the centre,” says M. Santhosh Kumar, vice president, Kanjikuzhy grama panchayat.