NEW DELHI : Shravan Kumar Yadav often wakes up in the middle of the night these days. The incessant mooing and grunting from the adjoining cattle shed sounds like a rebellion brewing next door.
Yadav knows the reason: his animals are hungry. Yadav, who lives on the outskirts of Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, is struggling to feed his 40-strong herd of cows and buffaloes.
As the Indian government has extended the lockdown to contain the spread of covid-19 up to 3 May, Yadav is facing unprecedented economic hardship and uncertainty.
Cattle feed is hard to procure and prices have shot up. Milk prices, meanwhile, have plunged. Much of Yadav’s regular business—delivery of liquid milk to confectioners and tea shops—has come to a grinding halt.