TN policemen as arsonists? Fresh videos raise questions
Highlights
Images of police personnel torching autorickshaws parked on the streets went viral
Chennai city police commissioner S George refuted the charges
The video footage was sent to cybercrime wing for analysis
CHENNAI: Protesters and police locked horns in the city on Monday as law and order took a turn for the worst with images going viral of police personnel torching autorickshaws parked on the streets. Reacting to the photographs, Chennai city police commissioner S George refuted the charges, stating that the video "appears to be morphed". "It is ridiculous to blame the police. We have given the video footage to our cybercrime wing for analysis,” he said.
Police personnel tried to control crowds gathered near Vivekanandar Illam as resilience turned to violence with stones being hurled and vehicles being vandalised.
Chennai city police, monitoring protests held on Kamarajar Salai off Marina beach, were forced to evacuate protesters. Police say senior officers conducted various rounds of talks with the agitators before they were forced to use "mild force" to remove them from the location.
One of the protesters, Loyola College professor Andrew Sesuraj though said there were instances of police excess. “Policemen went on attacking people and vandalised vehicles parked on the road. They also forced shopkeepers to down their shutters,” Sesuraj said. “My motorbike was partially damaged after a team of policemen hit it. They also attacked an old man and couple of innocent women walking on the road on Seventh Street of Anna Salai in Sastri Nagar,” he added.
A grab from a video that went viral, showing policemen damaging public property
ADVERTISEMENT
On another stretch of the Marina, a platoon of police personnel tried to remove protesters, as they charged towards the sea, forming a human chain of resistance along the shoreline.
Protesters were heard shouting out that even though Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam had brought in a special ordinance to conduct jallikattu or the bull-taming sport, it did nothing for their demand that the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act be amended.
But efforts by the police to quell the mob, for most part seemed impeded by a lack of preparedness as well as coordination between senior officers.
Attempts by the police to diffuse the crowd with tear gas, for instance, failed as most of the rounds of ammunition fell to the ground due to a malfunction. In another incident at Nadu Kuppam, more than a dozen probationary sub-inspectors were injured as they were caught off-guard and without safety gear when a mob hurled petrol bombs at them.
ADVERTISEMENT
No bullshit: How Jallikattu makes a good business sense
1/9
Jallikattu, the bull-taming sport of Tamil Nadu banned by the Supreme Court due to cruelty to the animals, is not just a folk sport.
It has spawned an economy of its own in rural parts of the state that has far-reaching implications.
Below are the ways the economy and business of Jallikattu works:
Jallikattu, the bull-taming sport of Tamil Nadu banned by the Supreme Court due to cruelty to the animals, is not just a folk sport.
It has spawned an economy of its own in rural parts of the state ..
Read More
Bulls that are reared for Jallikattu are an asset class of sorts. For instance, a poor farmer buys a bull calf for Rs 15,000.
He raises it to make it strong. The feeding and maintenance of the bull costs him nearly Rs. 300 a day. The calf matures after one-and-a-half years.
If the farmer makes it perform in Jallikattus, he can win prizes if it performs well. That also raises its price to a few lakhs. Good bulls provide a very high return on investment.
Bulls that are reared for Jallikattu are an asset class of sorts. For instance, a poor farmer buys a bull calf for Rs 15,000.
He raises it to make it strong. The feeding and maintenance of the bull ..
Read More
The Supreme Court's decision to ban Jallikattu has brought down prices of the sport bulls. From Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh, they began selling at mere Rs 5,000.
The Supreme Court's decision to ban Jallikattu has brought down prices of the sport bulls. From Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh, they began selling at mere Rs 5,000.
Apart from the cultural angle, there is a small economy involved. Rearing of sport bulls not only give small farmers and the rural poor a chance to make a low investment in a calf and get a big return if it performs well in a Jallikattu; rearing a Jallikattu bull also supports a range of rural poor who make accessories for the bull.
Apart from the cultural angle, there is a small economy involved. Rearing of sport bulls not only give small farmers and the rural poor a chance to make a low investment in a calf and get a big retur..
Read More
A lot of money is spent on a Jallikattu event. It ranges from Rs 50,000 to Rs. 20 lakh. Dozens of Jallikattus were oragnised before the legal intervention by PETA.
Jallikattus are big events that draw people in thousands. They generate a lot of consumption around them which is significant for the rural poor.
A lot of money is spent on a Jallikattu event. It ranges from Rs 50,000 to Rs. 20 lakh. Dozens of Jallikattus were oragnised before the legal intervention by PETA.
Jallikattus are big events that dr..
Read More
Decades ago, the government started discouraging rearing of native breeds of bulls through various laws.
Cows of the native breed yield far less milk than the cross-bred cows such as Jersey and Holstein Friesian. Increasing foreign cattle breeds was one government measure to raise milk yield in India. But supporters of native breeds argue that foreign breeds might not be a better option in the long run.
Native breeds require less expensive maintenance and are less vulnerable to diseases and viruses. Jersey cows also require more grazing pastures.
In the long run, native breeds are a better economic option. And Jallikattu is one big way people keep on rearing native cattle.
Decades ago, the government started discouraging rearing of native breeds of bulls through various laws.
Cows of the native breed yield far less milk than the cross-bred cows such as Jersey and Hols..
Read More
Since the government wanted to encourage cross-bred cattle, it had forcibly neutered native bulls to decrease the number of native cows or put stringent controls on breeding through native bulls.
The supporters of native breeds argue that this has led to foreign companies creating monopoly on semen. Artificial insemination, where semen from one bull can impregnate scores of cows, is criticised because it is believed to destroy the genetic diversity of cattle.
Since the government wanted to encourage cross-bred cattle, it had forcibly neutered native bulls to decrease the number of native cows or put stringent controls on breeding through native bulls.
Th..
Read More
Can we go against the logic of the market? If the cow of a native breed yields just three litres of milk a day and a Jersey cow yields 12 litres, people in dairy business will opt for Jersey cows.
Supporters of native breeds argue that dairy farmers can be allowed to keep the breed they want, but others might want to keep native breeds.
If they yield less milk, they also require less money on upkeep.
Can we go against the logic of the market? If the cow of a native breed yields just three litres of milk a day and a Jersey cow yields 12 litres, people in dairy business will opt for Jersey cows.
S..
Read More
Jallikattu supports small rural economy and helps preserve genetic diversity.
In the future, the low-yield milk of native cows can generate a huge demand as increasingly people perceive it to be more nutritious.
If native breeds are preserved, as Jallikattu does, it can lead to a new phenomenon in the dairy sector in future.
Jallikattu supports small rural economy and helps preserve genetic diversity.
In the future, the low-yield milk of native cows can generate a huge demand as increasingly people perceive it to be mor..
AIADMK chief Palaniswami assures Rs 10 lakh relief to tamers who die during Jallikattu
