Delhi s high tech cows
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (mcd) has come up with a unique solution to the traffic and sanitation menace posed by stray cattle. It is implanting microchips in the cattle before they are auctioned.
"Most stray cattle on the roads come from illegal dairies,' says mcd commissioner Rakesh Mehta. These are impounded and auctioned after microchips are fitted in them at the Baprola Cattle Pound in west Delhi. The microchip is administered orally and gets embedded in the animals' stomachs. The buyer bears the chip's cost of Rs 500. "The microchips would help ascertain the cattle's ownership and track their movement,' says S K Yadav, veterinary officer in-charge of mcd 's cattle collection drive. Each chip has a unique identification number, which is computerised along with the information about the buyer.
mcd plans to impose a fine of Rs 5,000 on the original buyer if an auctioned animal is rounded up. Earlier, the Delhi high court had ordered the civic body to pay Rs 2,000 for every stray cattle caught. mcd cleared the proposal to implant computer chips in cows and buffalos in April 2005.