Stray cow problem in India

The high number of cows wandering on towns, villages and even metros in India pose problems to commuters and administration as well as to cows themselves. The main cause of this problem is the religious belief among Hindus that the cow is a sacred animal and under no circumstance should be killed (see Cattle in religion).
The massive immigration of poor people from rural to urban environs have added to this problem as they bring their hungry and famished cows along with them to the cities. This is their only source of free milk - they allow them to wander on roads eating dirt, paper and even plastic and milk them at night.Due to negligence and indifference of the government this goes on unabated. There have been half-hearted attempts to provide solutions now and then by Hindus themselves by building gaushalas (cow-shelters) to accommodate cows but these have mostly failed because of economical reasons..
In areas which have a considerable population of Muslims, serious tensions often arise between the two communities when cows wander into Muslim areas and Muslims don't offer them adequate respect. There have been instances when rumours that a cow's tail has been cut caused riots so serious that army interference has to be used.
The laws banning killing of cows is not uniform all over the country, in Karnataka for instance, a cow can be legally slaughtered if it is "adult" (i.e. 12 years old) and /or incapable of breeding or deformed . In fact, BJP led government itself recommended a removal of the ban on beef export as part of the Tenth Five Year Plan proposal in 2002, allocating Rs 5,137crore to modernise slaughterhouses across the country..
The Cow Protection Department of RSS is even planning to launch cow urine as a soft drink as a step to curb western influence. It will be called Gau Jal. The Hindu nationalists, who are known for their opposition to western ways of life, are confident that their innovation will be able to beat Cola drinks, since it will be cheaper and will taste better while not carrying any toxic influences According to hindu traditions cow urine has medicinal properties
During one of his trips to New Delhi, Bill Gates counted 15 cows from the airport to his hotel.

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