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Elderly man dies in stray bull attack in U.P.’s Prayagraj
With authorities concerned yet to come up with a concrete action plan to tackle stray cattle menace, a bull attacked and killed an elderly man in Kydganj area of Prayagraj on Thursday morning
With authorities concerned yet to come up with a concrete action plan to tackle stray cattle menace, a bull attacked and killed an elderly man in Kydganj area of Prayagraj on Thursday morning.
In the latest incident, 75-year-old Brighunath Verma, a resident of Phoolmandi area of Naini, sustained serious injuries and died on the spot after a stray bull attacked him when he was passing through Chaukhandi locality to go to his bicycle repair shop at Gaughat.
The entire incident got caught in a CCTV camera and the clip went viral on social media platforms. Prayagraj Nagar Nigam (PNN) did send a team to catch the stray bull but it even injured one of its employees and he had to be taken to hospital.
Dr Vijay Amritraj, the veterinary and welfare officer of PNN, said the employee was out of danger and that the stray bull was finally caught and taken to Shankargarh cow shelter. “Stray bulls are being caught continuously in the city. Even after this, from where are the stray bulls coming is unknown. From June 1 to June 29, 224 stray animals, including more than two dozen bulls, were caught,” he said.
“Now deputing a separate cattle van for catching stray bulls is being considered,” Dr Amritraj added. On Friday morning also, four PNN employees got injured while trying to catch a stray bull near the PNN office in Civil Lines. Two young girls passing through the area also sustained injuries.
The problem is not just limited to city limits. On March 4 this year, a farmer was killed by a bull in Shivdayal-Ka-Pura village in Purabnara area in trans-Ganga region of the district when he tried to shoo away bulls destroying his crop in a field.
Moreover, residents cite many past incidents that were reported in the media but the officials failed to find a permanent solution. In 2007, two people were seriously injured in separate incidents of bull attacks near a hotel in Sobatiyabagh. About a year after both the incidents, a man sustained serious injuries in a bull attack and died on Jawaharlal Nehru Road. In 2014, a bull had attacked a woman in Sobatiyabagh. The ambulance did not arrive in time to take the woman to the hospital and she died.
After the death of the woman, the district administration had even set up an inquiry. In the investigation, a clarification was sought from the health department seeking reason for the late arrival of the ambulance. But nothing much happened and the police cremated the woman’s body as an “unclaimed one” as her identity could not be established.
In 2015, a reputed tea trader of the city was attacked by a bull. The businessman, who was badly injured in the attack, was first treated at a private hospital here and then referred to Lucknow where he died.
Stray cattle menace increases during the monsoons when all low-lying areas, including riverbanks, get flooded and parks and other open spaces become waterlogged and the stray cattle descend on main roads, streets and bylanes.
