MCOCA to Be Imposed on Cattle Smugglers and Illegal Slaughterhouse Operators

The Maharashtra Home Department has directed law enforcement agencies to invoke the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against syndicates involved in cattle smuggling and illegal slaughterhouse operations

Mumbai | May 22, 2026: In a significant policy shift aimed at curbing cattle trafficking, the Maharashtra Government has authorized the application of the state’s stringent anti-organized crime law, MCOCA, against networks running illicit slaughterhouses and organized cattle smuggling rackets. The state Home Department issued comprehensive directives instructing all municipal corporations, municipal councils, and gram panchayats to systematically locate and dismantle unlicensed slaughter facilities operating within their respective administrative jurisdictions.

Under the new operational framework, local administrative bodies will be held strictly accountable for ensuring that no unauthorized slaughterhouses operate in their territories. Simultaneously, the state Transport Department has been ordered to impose severe punitive penalties under the Motor Vehicles Act on any vehicles caught transporting cattle illegally. To ensure seamless coordination, the Police, Animal Husbandry, and Transport Departments have been ordered to appoint dedicated nodal officers and publicize their contact numbers to encourage citizen reporting.

The enforcement strategy places special emphasis on Maharashtra’s border entry points. Joint flying squads comprising personnel from the police force, transport authorities, animal husbandry officials, and local self-governing bodies will execute round-the-clock inspection drives along critical transit routes identified as highly vulnerable to interstate cattle trafficking.

Furthermore, the state administration has integrated this crackdown into its emergency infrastructure. The government has mandated that any citizen grievance regarding illegal cattle transport or unauthorized meat processing units received via the ‘Dial 112’ emergency helpline must be treated as a priority call, requiring the nearest jurisdictional police station to dispatch field units and initiate immediate legal action.

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