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Veterinarians extracted 71 kilograms of GARBAGE (plastic, nails and other waste) from a pregnant cow during an operation, but both the animal and her baby died in Faridabad, Haryana. The case has highlighted the country’s twin problems of pollution and stray cattle.

On conducting some medical tests examination, it was confirmed that the cow’s rumen contained a heap of harmful substances. Subsequently, a three-member team performed surgery on the cow and removed 71-kg mass of plastic waste, needles, glass pieces, screws, pins and coins from its stomach.

Grazing on the streets on Faridabad, the seven-year-old cow could not have consumed that amount of non-biodegradable trash overnight. It would have been consuming toxic waste for quite some time.

In a four-hour operation on February 21, vets found nails, plastic, marbles and other garbage in its stomach, said trust president Ravi Dubay. They also attempted a premature delivery.

“The baby did not have enough space to grow in her mother’s belly so she died,” said Dubay. Three days later, the cow also died. “In my 13 years of experience, this is the most garbage we have taken from a cow… we had to use muscle power to get it all out,” Dubay said.

An estimated five million cows roam Indian cities, with many gorging on the vast amounts of plastic litter on the streets.

There is no official, nationwide data on how many cows die every year from ingesting plastic. But in 2017, a Times of India report cited veterinary officials and animal welfare groups estimating that around 1,000 cows die annually just in the northern city of Lucknow from eating plastic.