Farmers in Odisha’s Kendrapara distri෴ct on Tuesday let loose livestock in Rajnagar block and subdivision offices in protest against lack of steps to protect their crops froܫm damage by herds of stray cattle.
Officials said that work in both the offices came to a standstill for about three hours as stray cattle invaded office rooms.
“We locked up the stray cattle in both the offices. It was a s☂ymbolic protest to send a message to the local administration,” said Deepak Behera, a farmer from Gopalpur village who participated in t🅠he agitation.
“The officials have assured us they 🌠would set cattle shelter houses to address our grievances,” Behera said.
Ashok Swa𒊎in, a farmerಞ from Rajnagar, said the cattle menace had assumed alarming proportions in their areas.
T♛he animals are destroying standing crops and have become a serious threat to human🌳 lives, Swain said.
“There are genuine grounds f🥂or the farmers to stage a protest of this nature,” Rajnagar Tehsil🦹dar Bholanath Sethi said.
“We will soon identify land to build a cow shelter where stray animals🍌 wi🤡ll be kept,” Sethi added.
(PTI inputs)
