COVID-19 lockdown: Stray animals go hungry in Agra; people chip in to provide food

Several organisations chipped in to provide food to stray animals including cows, dogs and monkeys with green fodder, toasts and bananas in Agra after reports suggested that animals were turning aggressive due to lack of food amid the 21-day lockdown.

Agra (Uttar Pradesh): Thousands of stray cows, dogs and monkeys are being provided with green fodder, toasts and bananas in Agra by the locals after reports suggested that animals were turning aggressive and violent due to lack of food.

Pandit Jugal Kishore of the River Connect Campaign told reporters, "People who used to feed monkeys and birds at the Yamuna river bank stopped coming due to nationwide lockdown. The monkeys had turned ferocious and were attacking all those who passed this way."

He went on to add: "Several organisations came forward to provide food packets for the humans but the simian, canine and bovine population have been under acute stress for want of food. Our group pooled in resources and are doing our best to offer these creatures some relief."

With one more suspected case of a young female who had recently returned from London, the number of positive coronavirus cases in Agra has gone up to 10. Over a thousand are still under observation.

IANS Report