UP CM Yogi Adityanath begins fulfilling BJP's promises, two slaughterhouses in Allahabad sealed

Allahabad: Hours after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yogi Adityanath took over as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, two slaughterhouses in Allahabad were sealed by the authorities on Sunday night.

In its manifesto titled "Lok Kalyan Sankalp Patra", the BJP had vowed to take "stern steps for closing down all illegal slaughterhouses besides banning mechanized slaughterhouses" in Uttar Pradesh.

According to an official, the National Green Tribunal had ordered the closure of these two slaughterhouses around an year ago.

"We sealed one slaughterhouse each in Atala locality of the city and at Naini, on the outskirts, last night. The NGT had ordered closure of these in May 2016", the district's Veterinary Officer Dheeraj Goyal said on Monday.

He said the step was taken "following reports that though these slaughterhouses had been shown as shut on paper, business was running there as usual."

Goyal said that the NGT had similarly recommended closure of another slaughterhouse in the area but as there have been no reports of illegal business, his department had requested the police to keep a watch.

The BJP's victory in Assembly Elections had caused panic among big slaughterhouses across Uttar Pradesh.

Yogi Adityanath, said to be a cow lover, has always been vocal about shutting down slaughterhouses.

In his first press conference at Lucknow, Adityanath had asserted that his government will take steps to fulfil promises made regarding slaughterhouses by the BJP in the run-up to the state Assembly polls.

Uttar Pradesh is one of the top buffalo meat-producing states in the country. As per the state’s Animal Husbandry Department, UP produced 7,515.14 lakh kg of buffalo meat in 2014-15.

A report in The New Indian Express suggests that there are around 130 legal slaughterhouses in Uttar Pradesh. However, there are a number of illegal abattoirs in western UP.

Firebrand leader Yogi Adityanath was sworn-in on Sunday as the Chief Minister of a BJP government in Uttar Pradesh.