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Saturday, March 27, 2010

Owners of dead cattle allege foul play

TWO cattle owners claim that five of their 70 head of cattle died due to poisoning at a grazing area along the Kinta River in Tanjung Tualang, about 25km from Batu Gajah. “I am surprised by the sudden death of the five cows on Tuesday as traces of blood were found on their mouth and nose, which I believe are signs of poisoning,” said B. Amar Singh 46, one of the cattle owners.
He claimed this was the second time such a thing has happened.

“In January, three buffaloes died under the same circumstances and I lost about RM5,000. This time I lost about RM7,500,” he said. Kesvinder (right) taking a look at one of the dead cows. With him are Amar (left) and Sarjit. Amar Singh claimed that his cows were in good health when they were sent out for grazing in the morning.

Another cattle owner G. Sarjit Singh, 50, said this was the first time in 30 years that such an incident had happened in the area. Sarjit Singh said he lodged a police report over the matter in Batu Gajah on Tuesday. “I lost three buffaloes worth RM6,000 in June last year,” he said.

Three personnel from the Kampar Veterinary Department took samples from the dead cattle for analysis by Veterinary Research Institute, Ipoh to determine the cause of death, he said. Malim Nawar assemblyman Keshvinder Singh said the area that was allotted for cattle grazing was far from the residential area and not suitable to the cattle owners.

He hoped that the government would allow cattle to graze in government-owned oil palm estates due to the shortage of grazing ground in the area. Kinta district officer Datuk Razali Othman said he would investigate the matter.