On entering Pinjrapole, shelter for the cows, one would get a feeling as if one is entering Brindhavan. As far as the eye can see, cows grace in the open ground and come running to grab the grass from the hands of the visitors. The cows, 1314 of them, are quite literally dragged out from the jaws of death. Indeed, they have landed in Pinjrapole after being rescued from slaughterhouses. "These cows are saved by merciful persons who pay a large some of money to drive them alive from the slaughter houses and donate them here," says Suresh, manager of Pinjrapole.

The 12-acre site on the Konnur High Road was a donation from Messrs. Girdhardas Chathurbhujdas, Dewan Bhahadur Govindas Chathurbhujas and Chathurbhujdas Khushaldas and Sons of Vijayanagaram and animal lovers in the city. It was formally inaugurated in 1908 by the then Governor of Chennai, Sir Arthur Lawley. "We not only maintain the cows here, but also provide emergency medication in case they are ill. When the illness is severe, doctors at the veterinary hospital give free treatment to them," explains Suresh. 

The cow maintenance centre is bustling with activities early in the morning with 80 workers cleaning the sheds and taking milk from 135 milk-yielding cows. 500 liters of milk thus collected are sold to the donors who pay Rs. 1,500 per month. Activities will be at its peak on new moon day, when many North Indians visit this place and feed the cows with greens, as a sign of providing food to their dead ancestors. Also during 'Mattupongal', the place will be filled with visitors who donate heaps of fodder for the animals and spend the day here," says Suresh.

Although the centre provides support for many old cows purely with a service motive, cost of maintenance is one problem that is faced everyday. "For fodder alone, we spend Rs. 25,000 a day. Animal lovers are donating this money. Apart from this, we pay the workers and also have to buy medicines to treat the cows. In terms of cost, these are certainly on a higher scale," explains Suresh. In order to overcome maintenance problem, the centre has announced an adoption scheme through which donors can pay Rs. 5,500 and adopt a cow. We give a number for the cow and give its photograph to the donor. He is given access to the cow all the time. "We have done all this by keeping in mind the sacredness that the Hindus attach to the cows," explained Suresh. 

Through their noble service to animals and pain-taking efforts, Pinjrapole has plenty of relevance even after 100 years of its establishment. Apart from this, the centre also maintains 1000 pigeons set free from the cages of their masters. The centre provides paddy grains for these pigeons that flutter their wings freely.

L. Subramani