This refers to the editorial, “Revelling in brutal ways” (May 30). The angry backlash over the ban on the sale and purchase of cattle from livestock markets for slaughter is perfectly understandable for a host of reasons. First, it infringes on personal liberties by dictating what people should eat and not eat. The condition that the cattle must change hands only for agricultural purposes and not for slaughter restricts the freedom of cattle farmers and traders. The restrictions will result in substantial reduction in the availability of meat and by extension, in drastic reduction of meat consumption and alteration in food habits. As of now, 90 per cent of the animals for consumption are sourced from livestock markets and the remainder are directly procured from households and farms.
For the manual labourers, meat is a source of energy. The impoverished do not have the luxury of being vegetarian. The new rules prohibiting the sale of even unproductive livestock for slaughter will dissuade cattle farmers from ‘unprofitable’ livestock rearing. The new curb will deprive lakhs of people in meat and tannery industries. No doubt, the latest move fits in with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s conception of India. But over 70 per cent of India's heterogeneous population are meat-eaters and the Government cannot trample on their food preferences.