Border no more porous for Indian cows

Is it politics? Or is it economics? The questions relate to the recent directive on the part of the Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh to fully stop smuggling of Indian cattle to neighbouring Bangladesh.
The primary goal of his directive issued to the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) last Wednesday was to force the Bangladeshis to stop consuming beef! The idea seems an absurd one.
In fact, the smuggling of Indian cows to Bangladesh was put under intense vigil by the home ministry of that country for the past couple of months. The price of beef in the local market has gone up by nearly 30 per cent due to the substantial decline in the inflow of Indian cows. The price of a kilogramme of beef has shot up to Tk380 from the base price of Tk 300 a kg over the last couple of months. Traders concerned fear further rise in beef price unless the supply situation improves.
It is understood that Singh's stance on the illegal export of cows has originated from the religious belief of the Hindus who worship cows and do not eat beef. But beside its popularity as a food item among the large majority of population in Bangladesh, cows -- an estimated 2.0 million (twenty lakh) sneak into Bangladesh from India with the help of the border security forces of the two close neighbours -- do play an important role in the economy of the former.
Thousands of people are involved in cattle trading and marketing of beef across the country. Tanneries and a fast-growing leather and leather goods industry largely depend on the smuggled Indian cows. The government collects certain amount of tax from cows coming from India. With the decline in the entry of Indian cows, the government's revenue from this source has also dried up.
The Indian economy also stands to suffer, to some extent, if the government of that country is bent upon stopping the smuggling of its cows to Bangladesh. A report published in the leading Indian daily The Times of India estimated that the Indian government would have to spend more than Rs 310 billion annually to rear and feed the unproductive cows, which are usually sent to Bangladesh through the porous border, in different cowsheds. The amount is four times more than what the Indian government spends on child nutrition safety a year, said the daily.
Besides, local authorities of some Indian states would find it difficult to keep their roads clean and trouble-free because of the presence of large number of stray cows. The authorities in many Indian cities and towns are already encountering problems with a large number of stray cows roaming the streets.
While the incumbent home minister has expressed his firm resolve to stop smuggling of cows into Bangladesh, India has become the second largest exporter of beef. Last year India exported beef worth $4.3 billion.
The Washington-based magazine, The Atlantic, in one of its recent issues carried an article that highlighted the contradictions and different aspects, including political and religious ones, involving the Indian beef industry.
The article said the claim made by the Indian beef industry that its beef comes from buffaloes. But the right wing, religious and animal rights groups are not ready to accept it.
'While it's true that cow slaughter is banned by most Indian states and the export of cow meat is against the law, the acceptance of the cow's sacredness is not uniform throughout India and it's likely that cow meat is sneaking into the buffalo beef market. The export numbers do not match up, and it's suspected that cow meat is being snuck out', says the article.
Quoting from the book, titled, The Myth of the Holy Cow', written by historian D.N. Jha and published in 2002, the Atlantic article said the ancient Hindus ate beef. The cow got its revered status around 500 A.D. coinciding with an agricultural boom on the subcontinent.
'Jha's research offers copious evidence that ancient Hindu kings regularly sacrificed and ate animals including cattle. Cattle, even cow, was not sacred during the Vedic period (1000-5000 B.C) which was the time when Hinduism's oldest scriptures -- the Vedas -- were written', the article said.
The Atlantic said first Mughal emperor Babar banned cow slaughter in 1527 out of respect for Hindus; but some Hindu kings did not enforce the ban. 'The big picture today is a mixed one: On the one hand there are Muslims and Christians who don't eat beef out of respect for their Hindu neighbours. On the other, there are Hindus who eat beef', it said.    
In addition to contradictions, the India's fast expanding beef industry has given rise to political issues. During elections, parties and electorates seem to be divided along cultural, political and religious lines.
During electioneering in 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly criticised the Congress-led government's 'Pink Revolution', meaning the booming beef industry, as he described the so-called revolution as a ploy to woo Muslim voters. Since his coming to power Modi has not initiated a move that would disturb the beef industry. Rather the beef export is expected to rise by another $200 million this year.
However, if India decides to stop the smuggling of its cows to Bangladesh, it would not be proper to raise objection since the move, apparently, has been taken on religious ground. Initially there would be a few problems. But enough of local initiatives would be there soon to fill the vacuum. The Indian ban might then prove to be a blessing in disguise.
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