India News

After feedback from states, Centre has a rethink on cattle trade ban rule

Published

8 years ago

November 30, 2017

After feedback from states, Centre has a rethink on cattle trade ban rule

The Narendra Modi government is having a rethink on the ban it imposed on sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter following feedback from states, said media reports on Thursday.

Environment ministry officials said that they have written to the Ministry of Law about their decision to withdraw the controversial notification “due to several issues” and they would be “revising” it, according to the Indian Express.

“We sent a file to the Ministry of Law earlier this week, stating that we are withdrawing the notification due to several issues and will be revising it,” media reports quoting the official said, adding that a time-frame for the process has not yet been decided.

The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC), on May 23 this year, had notified changes to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017, defining ‘cattle’ to include “a bovine animal including bulls, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers and calves and includes camels.”

The gazette notification put restrictions on the sale of cattle. It mandated the constitution of District Animal Market Monitoring Committee by the District Magistrate or Collector and Animal Market Committee at the local level in consultation with District Magistrate and the State Board for the management of animal markets in the district.

It specifically mentioned: The purchaser of the cattle shall –

(i) not sell the animal for purpose of slaughter;

(ii) follow the State cattle protection or preservation laws;

(iii) not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose;

(iv) not sell the cattle to a person outside the State without the permission as per the State cattle protection or preservation laws;

The rules also prohibit establishment of an animal market in a place which is situated within 25 kilometres from any state border and within 50 kilometres from any international border.

The notification had defined cattle as a bovine animal “including bulls, bullocks, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers and calves as well as camels.

The restrictions were met with protests and attacked as a blow to animal husbandry, dairy farming, leather production and beef export. States like Kerala and West Bengal said it was a sly encroachment on their jurisdiction as it was a subject that fell in their domain. It was also denounced as intended to target Muslims, a charge that gained strength from a spate of attacks on Muslims transporting cattle by hordes of self-styled ‘Gau rakshaks’ (cow vigilantes) who came up virtually overnight – notably, only in states where BJP has a strong presence.

Farmers opposed the move to restrict trade in markets only to animals meant for agricultural use, saying they cannot directly access slaughterhouses. Farmers normally bring their redundant animals to livestock markets from where traders purchase and transport the cattle to abattoirs. After the ban, unable to sell or transport the animals that were no longer of any use, farmers began to simply abandoned the cattle.

While cattle disappeared from markets and cattle fairs, the ban also led to a dramatic rise in numbers of stray cattle and posed a threat to standing crops in fields where farmers were forced to keep vigil against them. Stray cattle also caused several road accidents.

Soon after the ban, in May-end, the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court stayed the cattle slaughter rules and asked the state and central government to reply to a PIL petition filed before it. The notification was challenged on the ground that it violated the basic right of an individual in relation to his or her choice of food. In June, it extended the stay by four more weeks.

In July, the Supreme Court extended the stay to the entire country.

The first hint of a rethink on the ban came in September from environment minister Harsh Vardhan. He had said the rules were a “regulatory regime” for preventing cruelty to animals and the government “did not intend to directly or indirectly affect slaughterhouses or harm farmers” or “influence the food habits of people”.

The states were then consulted on the notification. The India Express said the ministry also consulted animal rights activists and traders on the issue. The Ministry had sent two sets of letters to states, the first one soon after the Supreme Court stayed the ban, seeking their response. It had attached a copy of the notification, saying that a new draft would be framed based on the feedback received from them.

Meanwhile, amid the opposition from other quarters, the RSS and its affiliates came out strongly in favour of the government’s step, with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat himself hailing the move and even supporting ‘Gau rakshaks’.

It remains to be seen how the government would proceed hence.

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Delhi-NCR sees second spell of rain and thunderstorms in four days

Delhi-NCR experienced another spell of rain and thunderstorms on March 18, with IMD forecasting more showers over the next few days.

Published

5 mins ago

March 18, 2026

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Delhi and parts of the National Capital Region witnessed another spell of rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds on Wednesday evening, marking the second such weather event in the past four days.

The sudden change brought relief from unusually high temperatures recorded earlier this month. According to officials, the temperature at Safdarjung — the city’s base weather station — was recorded at 24 degrees Celsius at 7 pm.

The India Meteorological Department had earlier issued an alert predicting light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on March 18. Several areas across the capital experienced gusty winds along with brief but intense showers.

More rain likely over next two days

The weather department has forecast partly cloudy skies for March 19 and 20, with chances of light rain or thundershowers occurring once or twice during the day. On March 21, skies are expected to remain cloudy with the possibility of light showers continuing.

Conditions are likely to stabilise from March 23 onwards, with forecasts indicating a return to partly cloudy to clear skies across the region.

Weather activity across India to intensify

The IMD has also indicated widespread weather activity across multiple regions of the country in the coming days. Rainfall is expected to intensify in several states, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds.

In the northeastern region, heavy rainfall is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya during the early part of the week.

Meanwhile, the western Himalayan region is also set to witness a shift in weather patterns. Himachal Pradesh is likely to receive heavy rainfall on March 19 and 20, while Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir may experience heavy showers around March 20.

India News

Centre pushes states to cut levies to boost PNG adoption

The Centre has asked states to reduce local levies and streamline approvals to accelerate PNG adoption and city gas infrastructure growth.

Published

2 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has urged states and Union Territories to ease local levies and procedural barriers affecting City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects, in a bid to accelerate the adoption of piped natural gas (PNG) as a cleaner fuel alternative.

In a communication sent to Chief Secretaries, Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal highlighted that high right-of-way charges, road cutting fees, lease rentals and other local levies imposed by urban bodies are discouraging investments in CGD infrastructure.

High costs slowing expansion

The ministry pointed out that the CGD sector, particularly PNG supply to households and commercial establishments, does not receive direct subsidies. As a result, it depends heavily on viable returns, which are being impacted by excessive and inconsistent local charges across states.

It noted that these financial and procedural hurdles are slowing down infrastructure expansion and affecting the broader adoption of natural gas.

Gap between connections and usage

According to the government, while around 12.63 crore PNG connections have been recorded, only about 1.6 crore are currently active. The ministry stressed that improving ease of doing business at state and local levels could help bridge this gap and expand the consumer base.

Officials believe that rationalising levies may initially reduce local revenues but could lead to higher long-term gains through increased gas consumption and economic activity.

LPG shortage adds urgency

The push for PNG adoption comes amid supply constraints in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), linked to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Oil marketing companies are currently supplying only 20 per cent of normal commercial LPG demand to states.

To address this, the ministry has proposed increasing LPG allocation to 30 per cent for states that implement reforms supporting PNG and CGD expansion.

Reform-linked incentives for states

The Centre has suggested a set of measures that states can adopt to qualify for higher LPG allocations. These include:

Setting up empowered state and district-level committees for faster approvals
Introducing single-window clearance with deemed approvals within 24 hours
Implementing a dig-and-restore model using bank guarantees instead of restoration charges
Eliminating annual rental or lease charges for CGD infrastructure

The ministry said compliance with these reforms would be verified before granting additional LPG allocations.

Industry support measures

The communication also noted that GAIL and its subsidiaries have already allocated full gas supply to the commercial PNG segment to support businesses affected by reduced LPG availability.

The government reiterated that expanding natural gas usage aligns with its broader push for cleaner and domestically sourced energy.

India News

BJP seals Assam seat-sharing pact, Modi to hold 3 rallies in April

BJP has finalised its Assam seat-sharing plan with allies and is gearing up for an intense campaign led by PM Modi and Amit Shah.

Published

3 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Bharatiya Janata Party has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, firming up its strategy alongside National Democratic Alliance partners as campaigning gathers pace in the state.

Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 89 seats, while its allies — Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People’s Front — will field candidates in 26 and 11 constituencies respectively. The distribution has been decided after internal deliberations, with the focus now shifting to candidate announcements and campaign execution.

Campaign push led by top leadership

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address three rallies in Assam during the final leg of the campaign. Tentative dates for the rallies are April 1, April 3 and April 6, with events likely to be held in key constituencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also set to spearhead an extensive campaign across the state through March, aiming to energise party workers and strengthen voter outreach.

Candidate selection underway

The party’s Central Election Committee is currently meeting to finalise candidates. Sources indicate that approvals for most constituencies are expected soon, and the BJP may release its complete list of candidates within the next two days.

Ticket distribution remains a crucial exercise, with internal discussions highlighting its potential impact on local political dynamics. Party leaders have also touched upon the proposed delimitation exercise scheduled for 2027, which is expected to have long-term implications for Assam’s electoral landscape.