Beef supply within 3 days; GMC to file review petition
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 10 May 2013 21:09 IST
The Goa Meat Complex has assured to meet the requirement of beef in Goa within three days, even by getting animals from the rest of India, other than Karnataka and Maharashtra.
The GMC has also decided to approach the high court with a review petition, claiming that the case was not represented with facts and figures earlier.
Goa is presently facing shortage of beef as the Bombay high court at Goa has prohibited slaughtering of 130 animals at the GMC while also banning import of animals from Karnataka and Maharashtra.
After passing an ad-interim order of ban and prohibition on 26 April, based on submission of Goa government, the high court had relaxed on 30 April its earlier order by allowing legal slaughter of animals in the GMC.
However, the court yesterday rejected the plea of the meat traders to allow slaughter of existing 130 animals in the GMC.
“All the 130 animals are fit for slaughter and certified by the competent authority appointed by the government”, said Lyndon Monteiro, the GMC chairman.
He admits that Goa has limited number of animals, but assures to get animals from legal slaughter houses from rest of India, if not Karnataka and Maharashtra, to meet the demand.
“There will be shortage of beef until the high court does not review its order”, Monteiro however admits.
According to him, the requirement of Goa is around 150 to 180 animals every day while the GMC – the only legal slaughter house in Goa – could supply only 70 to 80 animals per day.
“We supply fresh beef, the rest of the requirement comes in frozen form from outside”, he said.
Monteiro however flatly refused the allegation that the GMC was involved in illegal slaughter of animals to meet almost the double the demand than the ‘official’ supply.
He even claimed that all the 130 animals, which are now prohibited by the high court from slaughtering, are fit for slaughter.
“R V Jog, the competent authority appointed by the government, has certified them to be fit for slaughter”, he informed.
Monteiro even said the report of the committee, appointed by the high court, is incorrect when it said that some of these animals are underage and not above 15 years of age. (No animal below 15 years of age is allowed to be slaughtered).
The GMC in fact is aggrieved that the court was not informed that it has a competent authority appointed under section 4 of the Animal Preservation Act 1995 to certify the animals.
Through a Mumbai-based lawyer Adv Mihir Desai, the GMC would now approach the high court on Monday with a review petition.
“The lawyer has been recommended by the (Church-sponsored) Committee for Social Justice and Peace”, he informed.
Besides informing the court about the competent authority certification, the GMC is also planning the court-appointed committee’s report, which has cited series of illegalities in the GMC.
When asked why they did not approach the high court earlier or did not intervene like the traders, Monteiro said they were waiting for the court order all these days.
