Shopian: Cattle thieves in Shopian district have stolen dozens of cattle in the past month. On Friday night, five cows including calves belonging to Abdul Ahad Dar of Kunsoo village of Shopian were stolen. Family members said that at dawn when they went to milk the cows, they found the door of the cowshed broken. Not a single animal was left in the shed, they said.

The family raised an alarm and along with fellow villagers went to search for the missing cattle, all in vain.

Similarly, a fortnight ago, a dozen cattle were stolen by thieves in Sugan village in Zainpora area. Soon after the theft, locals searched for their animals in different villages but found none of them.

Such thefts have also taken place in Imamsahib and other villages of the district. Police are yet to find any trace of the thieves.

Dairy farmers suggest that there is an intra-district organised gang behind the thefts as cattle stolen in Shopian is likely being transported to north and central Kashmir districts and similarly animals stolen from north are being brought to south Kashmir.

A cow, depending on the breed, costs between Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh. It is a huge economic loss for the farmers to have their cows stolen. The recent thefts, they said, have left them unable to sleep at night.

A senior police official told Kashmir Reader that police is investigating the cases. “We have solved at least three robberies recently but cattle thieves are yet to fall in the police net. We made some arrests but still we didn’t find any clue about the thefts,” he said.

Raashid Hassan