Banning slaughterhouse is fine, but what is the fault of these zoo animals Mr Yogi Adityanath?
With the crackdown on slaughterhouses by the BJP led - state government, zoo authorities have been forced to switch over to mutton and chicken.
Eating chicken and mutton may be a matter of delight and happiness for us human beings, however, this is not the case when we talk about carnivorous animals, like the Lion, Tiger, Leopard and others.
With the crackdown on slaughterhouses by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led – state government, authorities have been forced to switch over to mutton and chicken which is not going down well with the big cats and is also burdening the exchequer.
All four slaughterhouses of Kanpur Municipal Corporation (KMC) have been closed, resulting in the suspension of meat supply for animals.
Though the government is planning to provide buffalo meat in all the Zoos, the present situation remain grim for the big cats. Speaking to InUth, an official of the Kanpur Zoo said, “The animals are not liking chicken and fish, Yogi ji should think about them, they need buffalo meat to survive.”
According to sources, the government has made some sort of arrangement for the Kanpur zoo, but that will be a temporary service, after 4 or 5 days, the problem of shortage of food will rise once again.
“We will get meat from Unnao, but that is not the permanent solution. Shortage of food is bound to happen in next few days, as there are so many Zoos in the state. Limited suppliers means limited supply, for animals the government will have to look for a permanent solution,” said an official.
Meanwhile, authorities at the Lucknow zoo also said that the supply of meat has been affected since the past two days and a decision has been taken to switch over to mutton and chicken until the issue gets resolved.
The average consumption of a big cat is 8 to 10 kgs of buffalo meat daily which is hard to meet through mutton and chicken.
The Kanpur zoo has 70 carnivorous animals, including lion Ajay and lioness Nandini. A tiger, Abhay, was brought here in 2010 while the lions arrived in December, 2016.
Speaking to InUth, Ashutosh Pandey, a visitor, said: “These animals shouldn’t suffer due to the state government’s decision. Proper arrangements should be made for them. If they die due to the shortage of food, who will take the responsibility.”
Besides the lions and tigers the zoo authorities have to feed panthers, hyenas, wolves and jackals, which are all dependent on buffalo meat. As the meat delivery has been hit hard, the zoo administration has now pinned its hopes on the state government only.
“We are hoping that the state government will think about these animals also. They are not voters but they also have a right to live,” said an official.
The Uttar Pradesh government recently went into crackdown mode after CM Yogi Adityanath sought an action plan for closure of slaughterhouses and a “blanket ban” on cow smuggling, as illegal abattoirs and meat shops across the state faced the heat.