Damodar Das, a 62-year-old milkman, had a harrowing experience when a group of cow vigilantes stopped him at Baramunda here on Thursday while he was transporting two cows from Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh to his native village in Odisha’s Bhadrak district.

Das was waylaid by a mob chanting slogans of “Jai Shri Ram”.

Das recounted: “Under the Kamadhenu Yojana, I had bought two Jersey cows. When we were passing the Baramunda bus stand in Bhubaneswar, a group of cow vigilantes suddenly stopped our vehicle and began abusing us. They attacked us with sticks and snatched away all the money we had.”

Sanjay Kathua, 48, another milkman, said his vehicle, carrying two cows and a calf, was also attacked. “They refused to listen to us and rained blows with iron bars. We were humiliated and beaten as if we had stolen the cows. No one was ready to hear our protests. One cow later delivered a stillborn calf, while another sustained serious injuries and is still battling for life.”

Kathua added: “We had purchased these two cows and a calf for ₹1.60 lakh under the Kamadhenu scheme. We demand immediate action against these so-called
cow vigilantes.”

Two other milkmen, Mayadhar Senapati and Bijay Kumar Deo, narrated similar ordeals.

On Friday, the Odisha Milk Farmers’ Association paraded five milkmen who had been assaulted. “What is their fault? They have been doing this for generations. Under the Kamadhenu Yojana, farmers are going to Andhra Pradesh and other states to buy cows and increase milk production. However, while transporting them, they are being attacked by hooligans. Vigilantes have become more aggressive with the BJP government in power and are targeting poor milkmen,” association president Rabi Behera said.

“Cow vigilantes looted nearly ₹70,000 from milkmen. Five were attacked, four injured and three vans were damaged. In the name of cow protection, they have unleashed terror on highways, extorting money from people. If this continues, it will break the backbone of Odisha’s milkmen,” Behera added.

The federation warned the government of statewide protests if the vigilantes were not arrested. Meanwhile, police confirmed the arrest of four persons in connection
with Thursday’s attack near Baramunda.

Dream come true

Subham Sabar, the 19-year-old Odisha student who has been working as a migrant labourer in Bengaluru to support his family, secured admission to an MBBS course at a
college here.

Sabar, who hails from a poor family in Mudulidhiah village under Banpur block in Khurda district, ranked 18,212 in the ST category and got admission to MKCG Medical College and Hospital here.

Additional reporting by PTI