Srinagar, April 21: A wedding feast on April 9 landed 560 villagers in trouble at Chodigam in Kashmir.
The revellers had to rush to get anti- rabies vaccine a day after they consumed the meat of a cow bitten by a rabid dog.
It started on April 8 when local meat seller Riyaz Ahmad Gojri sold the meat — which he claimed was healthy — to Bashir Ahmad Dar, whose son was getting married.
“ Everyone consumed the meat in the wazwan ( multicourse meal in Kashmiri tradition),” said Ghulam Qadir Sheikh, the namberdar of the village.
The same day, Muhammad Yasir Mir, a vet from a nearby village, declared that the cow was infected. He said he had given a dose of anti- rabies vaccine to the cow on April 3 when it was brought to his clinic by its owner Abdul Rashid Mir from Dardkote. Mir had informed Yasir that the cow was bitten by a rabid dog, which was later killed by villagers.
The vet had asked the owner to bring the cow for a second dose on April 8, but the latter sold the animal to Gojri.
The news spread like wild fire in Chodigam, causing panic among the villagers. They alleged it amounted to attempt to murder and demanded that the guilty be brought to book.
Subsequently, the butcher and the owner of the cow were arrested on the villagers’ complaint. The cow’s skin was also sent for pathological investigation to confirm whether it had rabies.
All those who had consumed the beef rushed to the Shopian district hospital. “ This is the first time in the history of the hospital that we had to administer 560 anti- rabies vaccines in a single day,” said Dr Mushtaq, assistant surgeon of the hospital, which was unprepared to handle the sudden rush.
Worse, the hospital had only 60 vaccines in stock and sought 500 more from Srinagar in view of the emergency. “ The villagers were given the first dose free, but they will have to buy the remaining four from the market,” Dr Mushtaq said.
The doctor also alleviated the fears and said the cow might not
have been infected after all. “ The cow was bitten by the rabid dog on April 3 and the villagers consumed its meat on April 9. It might not have got infected in six days. Any ways, the meat had been cooked,” he said.
Villagers who could afford private treatment rushed to other clinics in Shopian. “ All 21 members of my family have been vaccinated,” said Sheikh. But others like Gulzar Ahmad Bhat, a labourer, are not going for further dosages.
“ I can’t afford it. I am poor and have three children and aged parents,” he said.
Incidentally, cow slaughter is banned in the state, which has seen a steady rise in the number of dog bites every year.
According to an estimate, there are around one lakh stray dogs in Kashmir.
—Agencies