Heavy Police and PAC Deployment Clears Illegal Dairies in Lucknow Para; Nearly 200 Buffaloes Removed After Attack on Team

Lucknow Municipal Corporation and police forces conducted a large-scale operation in the Para area on Tuesday to remove illegal dairies, seizing nearly 200 buffaloes after a joint civic-police team was attacked days earlier.

Teams from Para, Dubagga and Kakori police stations, supported by a company of the Provincial Armed Constabulary, carried out the drive wearing helmets and bulletproof jackets. Livestock was cleared from localities including Tikonia, Gayatri Vihar, Gyanendra Vihar, stretches near Haider Canal and Deputy Kheda. The animals were shifted to Kanji House in Thakurganj.

The enforcement followed an assault on Sunday when a municipal cattle-catching team accompanied by police personnel faced stone-pelting and physical attack while attempting to seize buffaloes. Sub-inspector Vinay Patel of the Buddheshwar outpost was allegedly surrounded, choked and struck with an iron chain, resulting in a head injury. Several municipal staff were also injured. On the complaint of Animal Welfare Officer Avdhesh Kumar, police registered a case against 13 named individuals — Abrab, Imran, Saloon, Subil, Sarafat, Atiq, Aashif, Warish, Naseem, Ranu, Zeeshan and Nafish — and 24 unidentified persons. Two women, Khushboon (24) and Afreen (26), were arrested and remanded to judicial custody. Six arrests have been made so far.

Mayor Sushma Kharkwal, present at the site with Municipal Commissioner Gaurav Kumar, condemned the attack. She said the manner in which municipal employees and the inspector were assaulted was unacceptable and that strict action would follow. The mayor stated that the entire area would be cleared of illegal dairies, noting that residents had complained for the past 15 to 20 days about livestock waste clogging drains and creating unhygienic conditions.

Provisions of the Municipal Corporation Act, 1959, prohibit the keeping of buffaloes within urban limits as they are classified as polluting animals. Only a maximum of two cows are permitted with a valid licence. Officials said illegal dairies contribute to public nuisance, blocked drainage and environmental pollution.

The operation was carried out under continued monsoon conditions that have led to intermittent rain and waterlogging in multiple parts of the city. These weather-related disruptions have been documented in earlier reports on heavy overnight rain and the multi-day IMD alert as well as related coverage of flooding of roads and residential pockets.

The Lucknow Municipal Corporation continues parallel civic initiatives, including the recently introduced one-time settlement scheme for property tax dues offering waiver of interest and surcharge. In a separate development reflecting public concerns over institutional functioning, school students recently staged protests over teacher shortages, as covered in reports on the Gen Alpha students protest amid heavy rain.