New Delhi: Residents of South Delhi’s Tigri expressed outrage on Friday following the death of a 42-year-old man in an attack by a stray cattle, news agency PTI reported. They alleged negligence on the part of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) despite numerous complaints about the rising presence of such animals in the locality.
According to them, several illegal dairies were operating in the vicinity, and the incident on Thursday exposed the MCD’s “gross negligence”.
Subhash Kumar Jha, a resident of Khanpur, was awaiting his child’s school bus at Devli Mor when he was suddenly attacked by the stray animal, which gored him and relentlessly pounded him with its hooves as he lay defenseless on the road.
CCTV footage captured Jha’s son desperately crying out for help as the animal brutally assaulted his father. Onlookers attempted to intervene, trying to shoo the animal away with sticks in a bid to rescue Jha, but their efforts were in vain. “My uncle died due to gross negligence on the part of the civic body as they are leaving stray animals like cows and dogs unattended. The stray animal attacked my uncle, leading to his death,” Prashant, the nephew of Jha, said, PTI reported.
The villagers said that a lot of stray cattle were wandering about the streets since there weren’t enough cowshed spaces and a lot of illegal dairies were operating in the vicinity.
MCD Issues Statements Against Veterinary Department
In response to the incident, the MCD issued a statement affirming that its veterinary department would crack down on illegal dairies, cutting off their electricity and water supply and sealing them.
“Today, in the Khanpur area of South Delhi, an individual was attacked by an animal. In response to this incident, a team of the veterinary department of the Delhi Municipal Corporation took action and captured nine animals. Additionally, with the assistance of the Delhi Police, extensive measures will be taken against illegal dairies. Their electricity and water connections will be severed along with sealing these shops,” the civic body said after the death of Jha, PTI reported.
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Local residents, however, voiced frustration, claiming that their repeated complaints to the MCD regarding the menace of stray cattle had fallen on deaf ears.
“Attack by cattle have happened in the area earlier also and people were injured. But this was the first time that a man was gored to death,” said Manoranjan, the deceased’s brother.
Acknowledging the issue of stray animals in the locality, police said that they had notified the municipal corporation.
“We are yet to ascertain whether it was a cow or a bull and also finding out it was owned by anybody.” Another police officer said that Jha was rushed to Batra Hospital following the incident, where he succumbed to his injuries on Friday morning. His body was later handed over to his family after post-mortem.