Srilanka, Feb. 24 -- Two incidents of cattle theft were reported from Galewatte, Udugampola in January 2025. One cow, who had been blinded in one eye, was stolled on January 25. Two days later two more cows were stollen from a separate farm in the same area. Even though the owners had complained to the Gampaha Police, no information regarding the perpetrators had been gathered so far.

According to Police media reports, a total of 575 cows were stolen between 2023 and 2024. Following these incidents the former state minister for livestock development D. B Herath proposed to amend existing laws and impose stricter fines on perpetrators. According to the Animal Welfare Act, the existing fine for cattle theft is Rs. 50,000 but the former s...