Making use of ‘claw enforcement’, a Karnataka police station has ‘deployed’ cats to curb the increasing rat menace being witnessed at the station. The part-shocking, part-hilarious development was reported from Gauribidanur Rural Police Station, located about 80 km from Bengaluru city.
The police station was built in 2014. Owing to the construction and the environment, the police station has been attracting rats that have been nibbling away some crucial documents. To curb the menace once and for all, the police have deployed two cats.
In an interview to Indian Express, Gauribidanur rural police station sub-inspector Vijay Kumar said how the police station is situated near a lake and the rats have decided the station to be a wonderful place of retreat. To curb the menace, the police deployed one cat. And ‘lo and behold, the initiative worked and the rat menace reduced somewhat.
To tackle the menace head-on, the police decided to intensify the deployment and bought another cat to the police station. Till now, there have been three rats ‘eliminated’ by the ‘claw enforcement’.
According to a Right to Information inquiry, the Karnataka state government spent close to Rs. 20 lakhs to catch cats between 2010 and 2015. Further, the Karnataka Examinations Authority also spends Rs. 50,000 every year to curb the rat menace.
The Facts of the Matter
Many of us would remember spending our childhoods watching ‘SWAT KATS’, an animated show which showed two vigilante cats fighting feline villains in a fictional city. The two cats were Razor and T-Bone, hilariously named ‘Bade Meow’ and ‘Chote Meow’. Reality has strangely imitated fiction as a police station in Karnataka have recently ‘deployed’ cats to curb problematic menace – menace of rats.
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Rats were Nibbling Documents
The development was reported from Gauribidanur rural police, which was built in 2014, some 80 km from Bengaluru city. Owing to the location, the police station became a nice residence for rats over the course of time. Much to the annoyance of the law enforcement officials, the rats started to create a menace by nibbling away important documents.
Law Enforcement Deploys ‘Claw Enforcement’
Exhausting alternatives such as mouse traps, and other remedies, the police officials decided to bring the only creature that could curb the menace. They decided to deploy cats. In his interview to Indian Express, Gauribidanur Rural Police Station Sub-Inspector Vijay Kumar said that the police station was built near a lake, and hence, became a safe place for rodents to take refuge at.
“However, when a cat was deployed at the police station, the population of rats reduced, and therefore, we have brought another car recently,” SI Vijay Kumar said. He also added that so far, three rats have been ‘eliminated’ by the cats.
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Cats have Become “Family”: Sub-Inspector
“The rats run all over the police station and into the cells and rooms where important files and documents are stored. We provide milk and food to the two cats regularly. They have now become like a family inside the police station to us,” he was quoted saying in an Indian Express report.
Karnataka Authorities Spent Rs. 50k to Curb Rats, Mosquitoes Menace
It should be noted that Karnataka authorities have been fighting with rat and mosquito menace in the state for a while. Back in 2019, it was revealed that Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA), was spending over Rs. 50,000 every year to curb the menace. Between 2014-2019, the KEA spent Rs. 2,45,237 to get rid of rats, insects, and other creatures creating a menace on the premises.
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Karnataka Civic Body Paid Rs. 2 Lakhs to Catch 20 Rats
In 2014, a RTI query revealed that the Karnataka civic body BBMP spent Rs. 2 lakhs in six months two catch just 20 rats. At Rs. 10,000 per rat, the civic body probably paid a steep price to the piper (contractors) under the Mooshika Nirvahane’ plan.
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