Vijayawada: In a tragic incident happened in Daida village of Guntur district, at least 56 cows died after they fed on jowar sprouts and pesticides dumped in a field on Sunday night. When farmers woke up in the early morning, they found carcasses of cows lying across the field.
All the cows belonged to Gundala Lakshmaiah of Neredcherla village, who had been herding them for 15 years. The cows were let free for grazing at night when the incident occurred. In total there were 100 cows and 56 died; remaining 44 cows, in unbearable pain, ran away. Of them, 24 are yet to be traced as veterinary doctors could rescue 20 cows.
Speaking to TOI, Dr Sheikh Bashir, an assistant veterinary surgeon said, “Autopsy report shows cyanide content in the cows’ viscera. Normally, cattle have resistance to poison, but if they consume more than 20mg, they can’t survive.”
“From childhood, I have been fond of cows and took care of them even when our family went hungry. I am in shock. My livelihood has been snatched. I have lost more than Rs 25 lakh after the tragedy,” said Lakshmaiah.
According to a report by TNM, the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) of Gurazala, E Murali collected details from the spot. He later submitted a report to District Collector Kona Sasidhar, that will be handed over to officials in Telangana to ensure that the farmer gets compensation for his cows, each costing Rs 26,000.