Cattle death triggers action against impounding agency in Tiruchi

Tiruchi Corporation will blacklist a stray cattle impounding agency following irregularities that led to a cow's death.

Tiruchi Corporation has decided to blacklist the agency engaged in impounding stray cattle after serious irregularities came to light in the handling of a seized animal.

According to sources, recently, a cow was impounded near the Market area and sheltered at the Corporation’s facility on East Boulevard Road. Even after three weeks, the cattle owner did not approach the civic body to pay the penalty and reclaim the animal. During its stay at the shelter, the cow gave birth to a calf but died a few days later.

However, the city-based agency entrusted with carrying out the impounding drive allegedly buried the carcass without conducting a post-mortem examination or informing Corporation officials about the death. The failure to follow due procedure has raised concerns over the agency’s functioning and transparency.

Following the incident, the stray cattle impounding drive has been temporarily halted. Mayor M. Anbazhagan has instructed officials to initiate steps to blacklist the agency and appoint a new agency to resume the drive.

A senior official said comprehensive measures would be put in place to ensure proper monitoring and adherence to guidelines in future operations to prevent such lapses. He added that tenders would be floated shortly to appoint a new agency to carry out the drive.

Earlier, the Corporation had engaged three separate agencies to remove stray cattle from city roads. However, citing poor performance and lack of effectiveness, the civic body later streamlined operations by appointing a single agency to carry out the drive across the city.