Shahjahanpur administration asks village heads to shelter 10 cows each to rein in their menace
Shahjahanpur (UP), Feb 19: The district administration here has asked village heads take care of 10 stray cows each to prevent them from damaging farmers' crops.
The administration has made the call under the "Every pradhan, 10 cows" campaign started by it to bring to safety stray cattle and prevent them from blocking roads and getting into fields.
Officials here said the experiment was started in Shahjahanpur and has been a "great success."
A senior district official said under the campaign, more than 6,000 cows and other cattle have been safely kept in gram panchayats and the campaign is still on to bring more of them under shelter.
Stray cattle have often been reported to be causing damage to crops and triggering road accidents.
Shyam Bahadur Singh, District Chief Development Officer, told PTI that they had been receiving complaints from villagers about stray cattle.
"The matter was taken seriously and this programme involving village heads was formulated," he said.
A meeting of village heads was held here last week in which the scheme was chalked out and they were told to shelter at least 10 stray cattle in their area, Singh said.
Around 6,000 animals in 1069 gram panchayats of the district have been brought to cowsheds so far, he said.
He said that the administration has formed teams at the block level and is in the process of expanding the campaign to other villages of the district.
Rampur Barkat panchayat head Manvendra Singh Chauhan, who provided shelter to 18 animals, said that due to the initiative, their menace has come down to a considerable extent.
Brijpal, head of Mauzampur gram sabha, whose village is located on the Delhi-Lucknow national highway, said unclaimed cattle often affected traffic by sitting in the middle of the road.
The situation has improved now because of the campaign, he said.
Allahaganj-based transporter Rajendra Gupta felt happy that the number of stray cattle loitering on national highways in the area has come down, and so have the road accidents.
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B'luru: "Least priority, shifted late," says brother of patient who died in Ramaiah hospital fire
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Bengaluru: Hours after a fire broke out at the Critical Care Unit (CCU) of the MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital on New BEL Road on Thursday, a 34-year-old patient, Sujay Sujathan Panicker, tragically passed away. His family has accused the hospital authorities of negligence, which they claim led to his death.
The fire at Ramaiah Memorial Hospital is believed to have been caused by a short circuit. Initial reports suggested that there were no casualties in the incident.
Sujay, originally from Kollam in Kerala, had been residing in Bengaluru with his family since 2004. He was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and H1N1 since September 1 at the hospital.
Sujay's wife and father released a video accusing the hospital of negligence. In the video, his wife, Rohini Jayan, alleged that the hospital authorities took no action against those responsible for the fire.
Sujay’s brother, Sujin Sujathan Panicker, speaking to Vartha Bharathi, detailed the family’s ordeal. He said that despite his sister-in-law requesting assistance during the chaos, the hospital staff pushed her away, assuring her that all patients had been safely evacuated to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). However, Sujin claims that his sister-in-law did not see Sujay being shifted.
He further stated, “Sometime later, when a doctor arrived, she (Rohini) inquired about Sujay. It was only after the doctor questioned the staff that they rushed to evacuate him.”
Sujin added that by the time his brother was evacuated, 50 minutes had already passed since the fire broke out. "He was still inside, while all the other patients were taken out first. He was admitted to the hospital with a respiratory illness, yet he was given the least priority during the chaos. He was the last one to be evacuated."
He also claimed that Rohini had already noticed that Sujay’s condition had deteriorated and believed he had passed away, though the hospital authorities did not officially declare his death.
Sujin further stated that the hospital authorities called him and his father to the board room at the 8th floor of the hospital, where senior executives and doctors who had treated Sujay were present “During the interaction they (hospital authorities) claimed that Sujay was still alive and that his condition had worsened amid the smoke and that his chances of survival were less, which was not true.”
"Despite staff being present to evacuate my brother, they remained negligent. The fire broke out at 1:00 p.m., so why did it take 50 minutes to get him out? He was in a corner bed in the CCU, and it seemed they either overlooked the room or ignored it. Even after repeated requests, it took them 50 minutes to evacuate him," Sujin added.
Sujin also expressed concerns that the hospital authorities might attempt to influence the investigation. "They can influence anyone—any hospital, any report."
At the time of the interview, Sujin stated that neither anyone from the government nor from the health department had contacted the family.
A complaint has been filed in connection with the incident at the Sadashivanagar police station. "The statements of the family members have been recorded, and an investigation into the matter is underway. An FIR has been lodged under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) Section 106 (causing death due to negligence)," said Sadashivanagar police station Sub-Inspector.
Meanwhile, officials from Ramaiah Memorial Hospital were unavailable for comment.
