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Uncared and unhealthy cows are a common sight on Indian roads. No eyebrows go up when they feed on garbage and leftovers, despite being considered sacred by the majority of the population.
Home to 200 million cows, India has banned their killing everywhere except Kerala and some northeastern states.
The passion that a "sacred cow" evokes was visible a few weeks back in Jhajjar town of Haryana, where five people were lynched for allegedly skinning one alive.
In August 2001, the Centre established a National Commission for Cattle to suggest ways of improving the condition of cattle, especially cows. It was formed by an order of the Prime Minister's Office after the Shankaracharya of Kanchi, Jayendra Saraswati, went on an indefinite fast to press for total prohibition of cow slaughter.
"We recommended inclusion of the prohibition of slaughter of cow and its progeny in fundamental rights. We have also argued that a Rapid Cow Protection Force on the lines of other paramilitary forces be instituted, which can operate on an all India basis for prevention of cow slaughter," Gumman Mal Lodha, who chaired the commission, told rediff.com
The commission's report said those who slaughter cows or smuggle them to Bangladesh, Kerala and illegal slaughterhouses should be booked under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
It recommended a ban on crossbreeding involving imported cattle like Jersey. Indigenous breeds should be encouraged and import of cattle prohibited, it said.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad support the recommendations, which are being considered by the Ministry of Agriculture.
"The holy cow is not just of religious value; it also has economic importance in India. It is the backbone of the Indian economy. Apart from milk products, the urine of the cow is of great medicinal importance," said Giriraj Kishore, international vice-president of the VHP.
The cow is at the "centre of religious faith", he said, adding that Hindu scriptures equate cow slaughter with murder of human beings.
"In our neighbouring Nepal, even today cow slaughter is punishable with death. It is unfortunate that despite the recommendations of the cattle commission, the ban is not being imposed and implemented strictly in India," he told rediff.com
Lodha went a step further: "For centuries it [cow] has been worshipped in Indian culture as a mother. It is revered, respected and should be made the national animal [in place of tiger]," he said.
Kishore said, "Cow is already the real national animal. Such is its importance that even the Allahabad high court has ruled that, wrongly or rightly, Hindu consider the cow sacred and its slaughter can have serious repercussions."
But many people believe that making cow slaughter illegal would just move the industry underground, resulting in more cruelty towards the animal.
The recommendations also worry the leather industry, which is worth $4 billion and employs thousands of people.
Many retailers like Gap, Donna Karan, and Timberland refuse to buy Indian leather because of protests by animal rights groups against the ill treatment of cattle in India and their brutal killing in slaughterhouses.
"There are times when orders get cancelled. Various high-profile stores in Europe have stopped dealing with us. That hurts us financially," said C M Khurana, a Delhi-based leather exporter.
There are others who believe that the leather industry would be on the brink of disaster if the government accepts the recommendations of the commission.
"Things are not bad at the moment. But if the government agrees with the commission's proposals, the leather industry will be affected badly," said exporter Ravi Khanna.
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