Beef eaters in Kerala are in a quandry. Some time ago, when the call for shunning cow meat came about from ‘Gomata’ worshippers and saffron outfits, they were fortunate enough to garner support from a variety of like-minded organisations, including the CPI (M), so that beef continued to be a permanent presence in their dining tables. But now, it isn’t even an official ban that is making life less tasteful for them.
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Over the past week, beef has turned out to be a rare commodity in Kerala. The state, as with many other commodities, depends entirely on neighboring states for its beef. Anyone who has traveled the roads that lead to the state’s borders would know the manner in which truckloads of cows and buffaloes that are destined to end up on the Kerala menu, are brought in.
The Thiruvananthapuram-Kanyakumari and the Palakkad-Coimbatore highways play host to the moving in of trucks laden with cows and buffaloes, even causing traffic jams during certain hours. These are apart from the cattle that are made to trudge into Kerala on foot.
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The latest scarcity of beef has come about due to beef traders going on a strike, as a protest against attacks on vehicles carrying cattle from other states to the border points. Saffron outfits and animal rights activists, who have been vociferous against beef consumption, have allegedly resorted to attacking these vehicles, prompting the merchants to closed down business. Almost all beef stalls across the state sport closed shutters at the moment. The beef loving Keralite now has nowhere to go to find his favorite dish.
The little quantity beef that comes from inside the state are being bought in whole by hotels, who sell them at a premium. At Rs 300 a kg, beef in Kerala has become costlier than ever before. Many have thus been forced to stay off beef, at least for the time being – they hope.
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Beef, in case you didn’t know, is a Rs 16 crore-a-day business in Kerala. The figure itself stands testimony to how much the Malayalee loves beef. With official and unofficial bans, attacks on traders, and non-availability from inside the state, the beef eater knows not what to do now.
All he hopes for is an intervention from the state government. With the beef merchants’ stir set to intensify in the coming days, an intervention is indeed likely. But then, convincing the cow worshippers and the animal lovers is going to take much effort. Little do these outfits realize that they are tinkering with the stomach of the Malayalee.
