A man on a mooing mission

CHENNAI: After 13 years of making Chennai his home, on March 27, 2020, Rajavel Nagarajan, the voice behind Love Guru on Radio City, packed his bags and moved to his native town, Kattimedu, Thiruvarur district. The announcement of the nationwide lockdown offered Rajavel an antidote to break away from his years of hustling, and time, of course, was unhurried, thanks to the screeching halt on most economic activities. It was his chance to reconnect with his roots without the worry of going back to the humdrum, especially at a time when the uncertain clouds of coronavirus didn’t reveal when normalcy would be restored.

So, in his part of green paradise, Rajavel invested his free hours in learning farming techniques. That he belonged to an agricultural family, which is into paddy cultivation, helped him rejoice the warmth of fellow farmers, earthy fragrance of the soil and the satisfaction of relishing a home-cooked meal freshly prepared out of farm harvest. The more he spent time on the fields, the closer he was exposed to the ground realities. Watching more tractors being used for ploughing instead of the native cattle breed Umblachery, jolted him. 

“I was taken aback by the drastic drop in the count of this breed in its ecosystem. Thanks to the white revolution, plenty of native cow varieties like these lost their charm and the markets have only been flooded with foreign and hybrid breeds for many years now. So, I bought an Umblachery calf. One wasn’t enough and I wanted to buy more, but I couldn’t find many. Umblachery is indigenous to Nagapattinam, Thanjavur, Thiruvarur and other Cauvery delta districts. This breed is suitable for ploughing, carting, threshing and levelling in marshy paddy fields. But they are not milk-yielding cows,” explains Rajavel.

A battle to save cattle
Over the next few months, he read extensively about the Umblachery cattle and nourishing the one he had bought. When the lockdown restrictions eased up, he moved back to Chennai, but this time he had left his heart among the dying breed of cattle. “I video-called my mother daily, asking her to show me our calf because I missed it so much. I decided to dedicate my time solely to revive the breed and save them from slaughterhouses. I spent 15 days in my village and the rest in Chennai. After much contemplation, I quit my job in early January,” narrates Rajavel, who bought more Umblachery cattle every time he went home in the following months.

“Most of the cows I bought were either pregnant or those that came with calves. The idea is to give the cows an ambient setting and space for mating. I plan to give one calf each to families from economically weaker sections for free. All they have to do is make an entry in the registry whether they want a bull or cow. If they choose a cow, the family can enjoy all its benefits but give me the first calf born to it and not sell the cow. If it’s a bull, they can use it for Jallikattu, bullock-carts or ploughing,” shares Rajavel, who now owns 25 Umblachery cows.

Adopt a cow
To create more awareness and raise money to save the cattle, Rajavel has registered with Milaap, a fund-raising platform. He is also hosting an adoption campaign where anyone across the globe can own Umblachery cattle through him. “I’m in touch with cow brokers who mediate the buying in 40 km radius around my hometown. They alert me, on WhatsApp, whenever there’s a cow for sale. A cow costs anywhere between Rs 10,000 to Rs 30,000. The price differs when it’s a bull or calf. People can buy these cows and give it to a family whose name is mentioned in the beneficiary registry I maintain. The cattle will be taken care of by the local family.

In turn, the cattle will take care of them by giving calves, milk and manure. The donors get the mere satisfaction of helping a family. I’m also encouraging people to come and visit our farm as it’ll help them understand the importance better when they see the cows and spend time petting them. It’s an on-going process and I hope to spread the word on social media platforms,” details Rajavel.  Food for an Umblachery cow in the former RJ’s shed costs Rs 100 to Rs 150. “They consume only paddy straw and husk and are low maintenance. We spend even so much only because the cows are tied in their respective homes until harvest season is over because they might invade into the agricultural field and feed on the crops. Three workers take care of the cows and I’m paying them Rs 5,000 each. Altogether it costs me Rs 20,000-Rs 25,000 to manage 25 cows. People can contribute as much as they can,” he  says. 

Big bovine dreams
Rajavel has received Rs 3,90,000 on Milaap, so far. “A handful of celebrities like politician Seeman, Hip-hop Tamizha Adhi, director Rajumurugan and RJ Vignesh of Black Sheep YouTube channel have offered to help. Like me, there are many working towards saving Umblachery. I’m only trying to use my contacts to speed the process. We’ve been receiving money as low as Rs 5 and Rs 8 on Milaap. But that’s okay as long as one wants to help,” he shares. 

Determined to take this cause far and wide, he is keen to document the distinct features of Umblachery cows in his town. “I want to start a research foundation for this breed. I’m also looking to save up to 1,000 cattle by next year, for which we will need 1,000 donors and 1,000 beneficiaries. Farmers and urban dwellers must also be educated about the benefits of this native breed and its value-added products. Once this is successful, I will start an agricultural research foundation and educate people about natural farming. It has to be a people’s project. I hope this inspires others to save other endangered indigenous cattle breeds from extinction,” he sums up. 

Talking topics
With 1,10,000 subscribers and 252 videos, Pesu Tamizha Pesu is a YouTube channel started by Rajavel in May  2020. The videos discuss Tamil Nadu assembly election updates, current affairs, social problems, and promote healthy conversations on a range of topics with popular speakers from all walks of life.

For details, visit: https://milaap.org/fundraisers/support-rajavel-1 or call: 9962998736