Bhubaneswar: Stray cattle have returned on the streets in several city localities like Sailashreee Vihar, Patia, Niladri Vihar, Kalinga Nagar, Baramunda and Old Town, causing significant inconvenience to commuters and pedestrians alike.
Residents attributed the lack of stringent enforcement measures by civic authorities for the return of the cattle menace.“Cattle frequently position themselves directly in the middle of a road, resulting in traffic congestion in our area,” Pratham Jena, a resident of Sailashree Vihar, said.
Cattle are causing problems not only on internal roads but also on several major arteries such as Jaydev Vihar- Nandankanan Road, Janpath and Sachivalaya Marg.
The situation is worse in Raghunatpur area, near Nandakanan zoo, where cattle owners allegedly allow the animals to roam freely in the middle of the road.
“While travelling in the evening, I escaped collision with a stray cow in Raghunathpur. It could have been fatal,” Bimal Mohanty, a resident of Nandan Vihar, said.
City mayor Sulochana Das said that they have already cautioned cattle owners that if they release their animals in the open, they will catch them and will not return them. “Our enforcement efforts are progressing effectively. We will once again alert them to conduct comprehensive enforcement activities in the problem areas,” she assured.
Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has a kine house at Jamukoli on the city outskirts where they keep stray cattle after catching them from the streets.

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