Beef Fry, Beef Dry Fry, Beef Shredded, Beef Curry, Chilli Beef, Chilli Chicken, Chicken 65, Chicken Burst, Chicken Kanthari, Periperi Chicken and Pepper Chicken are just a few of Malayali’s favourites. Have you ever thought how healthy are these delicious and non-veg dishes that adorn the dinner table of the Malayalis?

Cattle is brought from other states to Kerala for slaughter without following any rules and regulations. Loads often arrive without presenting documents such as health certificates. The cattle will be crammed into vehicles.

220-250 loads of cattle reach the markets of Kerala each day. Last June, when Eid Mubarak was celebrated, 50,324 cattle arrived across the state. Vaniyamkulam, Ottappalam which is the main cattle trading cente witnessed a trade of 10.5 crore rupees! 80 loads reached the market on that day. A trade worth six and a half crores was also held here on Baliperunal. The cattle were brought from states such as Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Haryana, Orissa, Bengal and Gujarat. Vaniyamkulam Panchayat earns Rs 25 lakhs from here per annum.

Cattle for slaughter are mainly brought to Palakkad from the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka without certificates. The market at Pollachi operates only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Anyone can buy cattle from here with the help of middlemen without any certificate or documents. The middlemen themselves will bring the cattle across the border. Severely injured and diseased cattle are available here at low prices. Many of the cattle from here reach Kerala also.

Each animal in the vehicle should get proper ventilation when cattle are transported from one state to another by vehicle. Water and feed should be ensured as prescribed by the Animal Welfare Board. These rules are not followed in the case of cattle brought from Pollachi to Kerala for slaughter. It is high time Keralites should rethink about their food habits and health.