BJP effect: Beef is vanishing from India’s Bengal, forcing diet changes

Kolkata, India – It’s 12pm connected a weekday, and the lane successful the city’s Tangra neighbourhood facing the sole bovine slaughterhouse successful Kolkata is empty. Run by the city’s municipal corporation, the colonial-era gathering successful the superior of the eastbound Indian authorities of West Bengal looks similar a fortress with its elephantine robust gates locked from the inside.

A peek done a spread betwixt the gates reveals schoolboys moving astir and playing successful the immense bare campus. “Those boys standard the walls and participate the slaughterhouse ever since it got unopen down successful May,” says Mohammad Mehmood Alam, manager of a roadside eatery other the installation that mostly caters to regular wage labourers, taxi and autorickshaw drivers. He’s inactive getting utilized to the desolation, helium says.

“I don’t deliberation this authorities volition fto this reopen immoderate clip soon,” Alam says.

On May 13, the West Bengal authorities issued a announcement connected bovine slaughter successful the state, lone 4 days aft the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was declared the victor successful the authorities legislature elections that saw the extremity of the 15-year regularisation of the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress enactment (TMC). The TMC is nationally successful absorption to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP.

The papers mentions strict compliance with the West Bengal Animal Slaughter Control Act, 1950, stating that cows, bulls, bullocks, calves and specified buffaloes cannot beryllium slaughtered without a certificate declaring the carnal acceptable for slaughter.

Such a certificate tin beryllium issued lone if the carnal is supra 14 years of age, unfit for enactment oregon breeding, oregon has go permanently incapacitated due to the fact that of age, injury, deformity, oregon an incurable disease. The announcement besides states that certified animals whitethorn beryllium slaughtered lone successful a municipal oregon locally designated slaughterhouse and prohibits slaughter successful unfastened nationalist places.

The locked entranceway to the Tangra slaughterhouse successful Kolkata, India [Arshia/Al Jazeera]

Sales down, beef stew gone

The notification was issued conscionable arsenic Eid approached successful May, and the interaction was immediate, with restaurants and markets crossed the metropolis and authorities reporting an acute shortage of beef. But the effects person outlasted Eid. More than 3 months later, beef remains successful abbreviated proviso successful a authorities wherever the nutrient was wide relished.

That’s due to the fact that the certificate that traders and suppliers request to show, establishing that a circumstantial carnal meets the conditions for slaughter, isn’t the lone bottleneck holding up beef commercialized successful Kolkata.

All nutrient suppliers besides request licences authorising them to practise their trade. And the renewal of these licences has been successful limbo since the dissolution of the city’s municipal corp successful June, aft outgoing politician Firhad Hakim resigned. Kolkata’s adjacent civic elections are scheduled for December.

Alam’s person Mushtaq, who is sitting adjacent to him, is among the affected nutrient traders. His licence is owed for its yearly renewal.

He laughs cynically and says nary of the six generations earlier him, each natives of Kolkata who made a surviving by supplying beef, had to endure this destiny – not nether immoderate of the past governments.

“It [the renewal of his licence] was halted due to the fact that of the elections, but they’ve not said thing to america astir erstwhile they volition beryllium renewed. I haven’t made a azygous penny for much than 3 months now,” says Mushtaq.

There’s a elephantine wok of beef bhuna cooking adjacent the entranceway of the eatery, and successful a smaller 1 close extracurricular it, pieces of food remainder successful a bubbling curry. During “better” days, some woks would person beef cooking. “We lone merchantability the bhuna now,” helium says. “Earlier, we’d marque a chaap, a stew, but for those, you request amended prime beef, not the benignant you person been getting successful these past fewer months.”

Prices, however, person risen arsenic proviso has dried out. A sheet of bhuna present sells for 120 rupees ($1.25), up from 100 rupees ($1.04) earlier the restrictions came into effect, portion buying a kilogramme (2.2lb) successful Kolkata costs anyplace betwixt 350 and 500 rupees ($3.66-$5.22), arsenic opposed to the 200-250 rupee scope earlier May.

“But income person gone down by a bully 50 percent,” says Alam. That’s due to the fact that helium conscionable doesn’t person arsenic overmuch beef to merchantability and can’t spot the prime arsenic overmuch arsenic helium utilized to – and due to the fact that galore customers are present frightened of being seen eating beef successful public, nether a BJP government, helium suggests.

He says helium misses a radical of young men – mostly Hindus – who would sojourn his constitution regularly for a sheet of beef stew. “And we’ve astir wholly stopped having beef astatine home, too,” his dependable dips further. “Maybe erstwhile a week, down from astir 5 to six times before. We’re conscionable having vegetables and inexpensive food now. Maybe chicken. We can’t spend mutton.”

Beef curry and rice, astatine a tiny roadside stall other the Tangra slaughterhouse [Arshia/Al Jazeera]

Bengal’s beef history

West Bengal has historically been among India’s large beef-consuming states. According to authorities data, 10.4 percent of agrarian households and 7.9 percent of municipality homes successful the authorities reported consuming beef oregon buffalo meat. In an Indian context, wherever the cattle is held ineffable by galore Hindus, that’s among the highest beef depletion rates successful the state – alongside the neighbouring authorities of Assam, and Kerala successful the south.

Among Muslims successful Bengal, two-thirds devour beef, according to authorities data. Christians, sections of Dalit communities, and immoderate Indigenous communities successful West Bengal besides devour beef arsenic portion of their regular diets.

The instrumentality laying down conditions that an carnal indispensable conscionable earlier it tin beryllium slaughtered isn’t new, but its enforcement has lone present go stringent, aft the BJP came to powerfulness successful the state.

Officially, the Tangra slaughterhouse isn’t shut, either: An official, refusing to disclose his identity, opens the tiny greenish doorway on the field bound partition and cranes his cervix retired to spot who knocked. “Come backmost later; the caput serviceman isn’t successful today,” helium says.

On asking what helium does successful the bureau these days, helium says: “We conscionable come, walk a fewer hours and spell home.” There’s nary clarity connected erstwhile concern mightiness instrumentality to normal, oregon whether it volition astatine all, helium says.

Some, similar Alfaz Laiq, a Kolkata-based businessman, accidental they saw this situation coming. In April, arsenic the authorities held the elections that saw the BJP travel to power, Laiq unopen down his dairy concern successful the territory of Burdwan successful cardinal West Bengal. He sold his retired cows to butchers and nutrient suppliers astatine discounted rates. “If I’d bought a cattle for 100 bucks, I sold it for 30 bucks, which is acold beneath the complaint astatine which it would usually spell for,” Laiq says. “That’s inactive amended than dealing with the headache” of the harassment that the BJP authorities has subjected cattle traders to since coming into office, helium adds.

Laiq fears that it’s lone a substance of clip earlier beef becomes a relic of the past successful Bengal’s diet.

“I americium idiosyncratic who utilized to person beef for meal but person wholly stopped bringing beef,” helium says. “Carrying beef has go much unsafe than carrying drugs successful Bengal now.”

In the past, BJP governments person introduced oregon brought into unit strict restrictions connected beef depletion successful respective states. Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka each person laws restricting cattle slaughter.

Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana and Uttarakhand besides expressly prohibit the merchantability of beef oregon beef products. Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh prohibit the possession of beef obtained done amerciable slaughter of cattle. Maharashtra prohibits slaughter of cows, bulls and bullocks and possession of their flesh, portion Karnataka chiefly prohibits slaughter and the merchantability oregon transport of cattle for slaughter.

Laiq has present moved connected to buying and selling goats, farming, and earning wealth by leasing retired his farmland successful Bengal.

West Bengal authorities Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, centre, greets the assemblage arsenic helium arrives to articulation the Independence Day celebrations, successful Kolkata, India, Saturday, August 15, 2026. Adhikari leads the BJP’s first-ever authorities successful West Bengal [Bikas Das/AP Photo]

In the Muslim-majority neighbourhood of Park Circus, a enactment of beef store owners garbage to talk astir their concern but to regular customers. Owners and managers of 5 specified shops selling beef accidental their businesses person incurred losses of 30-40 percent since May. “All of these shops successful this enactment were shuttered for the archetypal 2 months. We person lone been capable to reopen them successful the past period – month-and-a-half,” says 1 of the store managers.

“Supply has been erratic, prices person gone up, truthful income haven’t been large either. And frankly, the prime of nutrient has changed arsenic well. It’s not a bully clip astatine all,” says different shopkeeper.

Amid the tightening of regulations connected cattle slaughter and declining prime of supplies, astatine slightest a twelve restaurants successful Kolkata person reported discontinuing their beef dishes successful the past 3 months.

Among them is the iconic Zam Zam Restaurant. The edifice chain’s director, Shadman Faize, says they couldn’t compromise connected quality, truthful they had to region each beef dishes from their menus astatine each 3 branches successful the city. “Yes, we person mislaid customers and are continuing to incur astir 40 percent losses. We person adjacent had to laic disconnected staff, but it is what it is,” Faize says. “Hopefully, radical volition emotion our different dishes conscionable arsenic much.”

Only a stone’s propulsion distant successful the commercialized territory of Park Street, Olypub  – an instauration of the metropolis that dates backmost to 1947 – has for decades been celebrated for its beef steak. Now, though, it nary longer offers that each the time.

“We haven’t taken it disconnected our menu; we conscionable don’t person a regular proviso of beef immoderate more, truthful it’s disposable lone erstwhile beef is available,” a subordinate of its management, who requested anonymity, says. “There has ne'er been a concern similar this successful Kolkata before.”

When Al Jazeera asked Smita Pandey, the commissioner and administrative caput of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), erstwhile the Tangra slaughterhouse would resume operations and erstwhile licence renewals for beef traders would beryllium issued, she said: “The contented is related to the Animal Resources Development Department.”

But Nikhil Kumar Shit, manager of carnal husbandry and veterinary services nether the state’s Animal Resources Development Department, said the KMC – nether Pandey – was the authorization successful complaint of the slaughterhouse and licences.

“I americium not alert of the information that the Tangra slaughterhouse has not been operational for a portion now,” helium said. “Usually, the fittingness certificates are issued by the KMC and a veterinary serviceman moving with the KMC. I americium not truly alert of thing beyond this.”

The uncertainty implicit the aboriginal of beef successful West Bengal hangs implicit different parts of the state, too.

In the metropolis of Baruipur, wrong the territory of South 24 Parganas, conscionable beyond the limits of Kolkata, the section marketplace has been moving retired of beef by 11am since May. “Some days, determination is nary beef astatine all,” says Sayed Saifulla, a nonmigratory of Baruipur who works arsenic a hairdresser astatine a salon successful Kolkata.

Until May, helium says, beef was the 1 nutrient whose terms did not fluctuate much, adjacent if the outgo of food and mutton would rise. Now that’s changed. Beef prices person soared, too.

“We had beef astir each time for each our lives,” helium says of his family. “Now it’s travel down to erstwhile oregon doubly a week.” Even with that compromise, the family’s play spending connected nutrient has gone up 20 percent – from 5,000 rupees earlier May to 7,000. “Our net aren’t going up the aforesaid way, are they?” helium asks, rhetorically.

In Malda, a northwestern territory wherever much than fractional the colonisation is Muslim, a resident, requesting anonymity, says beef is present lone being sold done concealed networks. “If you cognize idiosyncratic who has a cow, you tin inquire them to springiness you immoderate beef,” helium says. “So they slaughter the cattle successful the dormant of the nighttime and travel and present the beef to your doorstep.”

According to him, the fearfulness of being caught dealing with beef is palpable successful Malda. “But it’s not casual for the mediocre Muslim to springiness up connected this meat,” helium continues. “So now, they’re risking their information and their lives to support eating it.”