‘VECHUR’ COWS

Cattle were domesticated at a very early stage of civilization. The excavations in Mohenjodaro and Harappa indicate the use of cattle in India as early as 5000 years ago. In Indian mythology they served as objects of worship. ‘Kamadenu’ means a cow from which all wishes can be milked. Animal milk released women from prolonged nursing, lowered infantile mortality, and provided a new and dependable food.

The three small ‘Vechur' cows we owned were called Ammini, Janu and Nandini. Ammini was a small cow, slightly reddish-brown in colour and was easy to handle even by children. She had a calf, Jacob and I used to take the cows out for grazing in green patches and gave them rice gruel mixed with coconut cake. They used to be given hay in the evenings. We had an extra special liking for Ammini. I reasoned out why this was so. Ammini used to permit both Jacob and me to pat, fondle and stroke her body, and then she would gush out and the adder would be filled with milk. Jacob and I would sit on either side of her and drink milk directly from her udder. Not once has she kicked us or created any problems for us while doing so. I remember Viswambharan, son of Narayanan Vappan, who used to help ‘Ammachi’ maintain them. The cows gave us ‘Panchagavyam’, i.e.  the five gifts of the cow are milk, curd, butter, urine, and dung. We children loved drinking lots of milk. We also used to like the other dairy products made from the excess milk. The leftover milk was made into curd. When the curd was being churned to extract the butter we made sure we were around to get our share of it. The freshly prepared butter was very tasty. When we had had enough of it, the remaining butter was melted to make ghee. Ghee used to be a regular item on the breakfast table. When mixed with sugar it is a good combination with steamed rice cake (Puttu) or other snacks, (Palaharams,) like fied cake (Neyyappam,) and roasted banana. A spoonful of ghee with hot rice and adequate salt mixed with it for lunch is a starter especially for a festive ‘Sadhya’. Cheese, yet another product derived from milk, is dearer in the West and other cold regions but it was unknown to the villagers of Kerala. With the arrival of “Pizza,” the Italian dish, the use of cheese has increased considerably. Could this be one of the reasons for heart attacks becoming common among the youth? In tropical climate the fat of the cheese   does not burn off, it accumulates in the body; on the contrary in cold climate this same fat is required to maintain their body temperature.

I knew cow dung is organic manure. There may come a time when cow dung would become costlier than milk!!

         

I remember the farmers who were genuinely interested in rearing cattle for milk and cow dung. For a lot of families it was their only source of livelihood. Our Island was self sufficient in milk. When labour became so prohibitive, agriculture was neglected. The farmers then found it difficult to maintain their cattle. Fresh cow’s milk slowly became scarce and packet milk has filled in the gap and monopolized the market. 

The government should give incentives to those who are interested in rearing cattle.  They also have to improve the cattle breed to enhance the milk production.

I recall the services of Dr Verghese Kurien, the Father of the White Revolution. He deserves the entire credit of making, Anand, a world renowned city and the Milk Capital of India, and “Amul” the best brand of milk. He will always be remembered for his great efforts and immense contribution to the dairy sector and in uplifting farmers of rural India. He made India the largest producer of milk in the world.

Excerpts from

MEMOIRS

An autobiography

by

Joseph J. Thayamkeril

Lawyer, Kochi, Kerala, India.

josephjthayamkeril.blogspot.com

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