<p>Bengaluru: Fourteen of the 30 government-run goshalas do not shelter any cattle, according to the animal husbandry department that has spent crores of public money on constructing these facilities. </p>.<p>The goshalas — one in each district — were constructed at a total cost of Rs 30 crore to "take care" of cattle that farmers may otherwise abandon due to the previous BJP government's law that imposed a blanket ban on the slaughter of cows. The only slaughter allowed is of terminally-ill cattle. Also, buffaloes aged 13 years can be slaughtered with permission. </p>.<p>The 14 goshalas that do not have any cattle includes one in the Hedlapura village of Aurad, the constituency represented by BJP's Prabhu Chavan who, as the animal husbandry minister, piloted the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, also known as the anti-cow slaughter law. </p>.<p>The remaining 16 goshalas have 811 cattle, according to animal husbandry department data.</p>.<p>Another Rs 17.50 crore is being spent to construct 35 more goshalas against 70 new facilities the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government had announced last year. New goshalas were announced apparently to prevent stray cattle from becoming a public menace like in Uttar Pradesh, another BJP-ruled state that prohibited cow slaughter.</p>.<p>Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's government has not yet taken a policy decision on rolling back prohibition on cow slaughter, which the Congress had promised to do if voted to power.</p>.<p>Empty goshalas do not make sense given the increase in mixed breed cattle in the dairy sector.</p>.<p>According to the latest cattle census (2019), Karnataka has 114.54 lakh farm animals. Only domestic (or native) cattle breeds have decreased from 66.03 lakh to 45.61 lakh due to farm mechanisation, urbanisation of rural areas and low milk yield. Mixed breeds are up from 29.13 lakh to 39.08 lakh due to farmers' interest in dairy and Karnataka Milk Federation's strong market, the government has said. </p>.<p>It is possible that cattle not making it to government-run goshalas are going to private facilities. Karnataka has 227 private goshalas that currently shelter 33,787 cattle. </p>.<p>"The department is understaffed and can't take care of animals," an officer told DH, adding that the government is planning to hand over even government-run goshalas to nonprofits. "Even NGOs aren't coming forward due to the costs involved." </p>.<p>Animal Husbandry joint director S N Nagaraj told DH that the goshalas were constructed 6-10 months ago and the administrative machinery was busy with elections. "We will surely work towards utilising these spaces adequately," he said.</p>.<p>The government spends Rs 70 a day on cows in goshalas. Also, under the Punyakoti adoption programme, 24,867 cattle in private goshalas have received donations amounting to Rs 27.35 crore.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: Fourteen of the 30 government-run goshalas do not shelter any cattle, according to the animal husbandry department that has spent crores of public money on constructing these facilities. </p>.<p>The goshalas — one in each district — were constructed at a total cost of Rs 30 crore to "take care" of cattle that farmers may otherwise abandon due to the previous BJP government's law that imposed a blanket ban on the slaughter of cows. The only slaughter allowed is of terminally-ill cattle. Also, buffaloes aged 13 years can be slaughtered with permission. </p>.<p>The 14 goshalas that do not have any cattle includes one in the Hedlapura village of Aurad, the constituency represented by BJP's Prabhu Chavan who, as the animal husbandry minister, piloted the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, also known as the anti-cow slaughter law. </p>.<p>The remaining 16 goshalas have 811 cattle, according to animal husbandry department data.</p>.<p>Another Rs 17.50 crore is being spent to construct 35 more goshalas against 70 new facilities the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government had announced last year. New goshalas were announced apparently to prevent stray cattle from becoming a public menace like in Uttar Pradesh, another BJP-ruled state that prohibited cow slaughter.</p>.<p>Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's government has not yet taken a policy decision on rolling back prohibition on cow slaughter, which the Congress had promised to do if voted to power.</p>.<p>Empty goshalas do not make sense given the increase in mixed breed cattle in the dairy sector.</p>.<p>According to the latest cattle census (2019), Karnataka has 114.54 lakh farm animals. Only domestic (or native) cattle breeds have decreased from 66.03 lakh to 45.61 lakh due to farm mechanisation, urbanisation of rural areas and low milk yield. Mixed breeds are up from 29.13 lakh to 39.08 lakh due to farmers' interest in dairy and Karnataka Milk Federation's strong market, the government has said. </p>.<p>It is possible that cattle not making it to government-run goshalas are going to private facilities. Karnataka has 227 private goshalas that currently shelter 33,787 cattle. </p>.<p>"The department is understaffed and can't take care of animals," an officer told DH, adding that the government is planning to hand over even government-run goshalas to nonprofits. "Even NGOs aren't coming forward due to the costs involved." </p>.<p>Animal Husbandry joint director S N Nagaraj told DH that the goshalas were constructed 6-10 months ago and the administrative machinery was busy with elections. "We will surely work towards utilising these spaces adequately," he said.</p>.<p>The government spends Rs 70 a day on cows in goshalas. Also, under the Punyakoti adoption programme, 24,867 cattle in private goshalas have received donations amounting to Rs 27.35 crore.</p>