Model code: Patna lacks an animal cemetery like the one in the picture

Patna, June 10: The death of a pet is tragic but worse is the aftermath. The state capital does not have a facility to properly dispose of the bodies of animals.

Thus, residents are forced to dump the bodies of their beloved companions without a proper cremation. Worse, dead pets and cattle are dumped anywhere, including river Ganga, posing a threat to other animals and humans alike. Officials, too, accept the absence of any facility to dispose of carcasses.

“Since there is no facility for the cremation of dead animals in the city, we are forced to dispose of the bodies of cattle on our own,” said a milkman, who has a cowshed in Patna.

He added: “To dispose the bodies of cattle, we take the help of sweepers, who charge around Rs 500 to Rs 1,000. The sweepers take the bodies on carts. They skin the bodies and dispose of the carcass in some barren land or bury them. In case, a sweeper is not available the dead cattle are thrown into the Ganga.”

Mayor Afzal Imam said: “There is no facility for the decomposing body of animals in the city. It is hardly possible to have a carcass disposing facility for a city, where even a solid waste management complex is not available to take care of the total garbage produced by the city.”

Environment experts in the city are also concerned about the issue. “There are two types of carcasses — one that results from non-disease mortality and the other from disease-related mortality. The bodies should be disposed of within 24 hours,” said A.K. Ghosh, the head of the department of environment and water management in AN College.

He added: “There are four ways of disposing bodies — burial, cremation, rendering and alkaline hydrolysis. If the death of the animal is due to disease-related mortality and the carcass is not disposed within 24 hours, it can lead to spread of contagious diseases like bovine spongiform encephalopathy, commonly known as mad-cow disease.

“It is very contagious. If it is transmitted to human beings, it causes rare degenerative disease of the central nervous system. Besides, after 24 hours, the carcass starts releasing toxic gases, including methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen disulphide and dioxins, which cause severe air pollution,” said Ghosh.

He said: “If the carcass is dumped in the open during rains, its decomposing results in leaching which leads to heavy contamination of groundwater.” Sources said the outskirts of the city are hot spots for dumping carcasses. In the New Bypass area, where piles of garbage are dumped along the roadside, many decomposing carcasses can be found.

“The New Bypass area has been a garbage depot for the city for years. Hence, it has also been the location for dumping bodies of animals. One can often find bodies of cattle decomposing there for days. These attract scavengers, including dogs, crows and vultures. The bodies emit such nauseating stench that it becomes difficult to pass through the area,” said Prakash Kumar, resident of the Pahadi area near New Bypass.