Bareilly: Acting promptly on farmers’ complaint about stray cattle destroying their standing crops, the Uttar Pradesh government ordered setting up of cowsheds at the village level, but kept mum on the issue of providing resources to buy fodder. Bogged down by the new diktak amid lack of financial resource, the Bareilly administration has sought fodder from farmers.At the monthly meeting with local farmers held at Vikas Bhavan here on Wednesday, chief development officer (CDO) Satyendra Kumar requested them to contribute fodder for the stray cattle lodged at the cowsheds in their respective villages.According to an estimate, nearly 5,000 free-roaming stray cattle in the villages of Bareilly district are posing a threat to standing crops.“The district administration has already been maintaining 20 cowsheds, while 59 are under construction in rural areas. Managing fodder for the cattle lodged at the 79 cowsheds is a difficult task,” said CDO.“The cowsheds are being built on government land with funds provided to villages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Gurantee Act (Mnrega). But, the actual problem is providing regular fodder to the cattle lodged at these sheds. Thus, we have requested the farmers to contribute fodder. Besides, we are also exploring other options to ensure uninterrupted supply of fodder to the cowsheds,” said CDO.The stray cattle menace is an outcome of negligence on the part of villagers, and without their cooperation it could not be solved, said district magistrate VK Singh, who presided over the meeting. “The problem has not cropped up overnight. Livestock breeders and farmers have been abandoning their unproductive cattle since long, which has now become a menace. This menace cannot be solved until all stakeholders join hands.”The farmers were, meanwhile, asked to get male bovines castrated before they turn two years old.“At government veterinary clinics castration is done free of cost. By doing so, we can reduce the number of stray cattle in the future. Besides, we are also launching a drive to castrate stray adult male bovine,” said DM.The DM added, “The administration will maintain a cattle register in each village, and farmers whose cattle are found to be roaming on the streets or straying in the fields will be charged fine.”

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