Jaisalmer civic body swings into action, buries hundreds of cattle carcasses after public outrage

Following public outrage over abandoned cattle carcasses at a garbage dump, Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer Municipal Council on Monday began the process of burying them. The city also decided to terminate the services of the bone disposal contractor.

Video footage circulating on social media showed hundreds of rotting cattle carcasses from the garbage dump on Ramgarh road, 7 kilometers from the district centre. While this sparked anger from local residents, cow protection groups demanded action.

Municipal Commissioner Lajpal Singh Sodha said that the contractor has been allotted space to dispose of dead animals in the dumping ground. “Usually dead animals collected from the city are dried for a day or two before being buried in pits as per the disposal process. The carcasses had accumulated over several days after the contractor failed to dispose of them properly,” said Mr. Sodha.

Civil society teams came to the scene after public anger and dug holes with excavation equipment to bury the bodies rotting in the open.

While Jaisalmer Collector Anupama Jorwal sought a report into the incident, the Municipal Council canceled the contract and seized the contractor’s deposit. Mr Sodha said the contractor would be blacklisted from participating in any future contracts.

Safe burial of the carcasses will also enable those living in the area to get rid of the bad odor and environmental pollution spreading to the region. Sodha He said that the administration took immediate action upon receiving reports of negligence in the duty given to the contractor.