Literally. As most people know, cows are sacred in India. Hindus, which account for about 80% of India's 1.2 billion people, believe that cows are the reincarnation of one of their 330 million gods. Yes, 330 million. Cows are symbolic of Krishna, one of the few main deities.
Female cows can be found meandering city streets throughout India. While they have owners - which I'm told they return to every night - they are free range throughout the day eating food and garbage on the street. They are a nuisance for traffic and don't much care for pedestrians. Trust me, I've been bucked by two of them. It doesn't feel pleasant. I've been told that male cows are often used on farms for labor.
Feeding a Cow a Banana Peel
Because cows are sacred, people are not permitted to kill them. I don't know what the penalty is, but I do know that you'd be hard-pressed to find a hamburger in most of the country. Apparently areas that are heavily populated with Muslims, such as Hyderabad, have beef available. I have still yet to see it. Even McDonald's doesn't serve beef - the Big Mac, which is called the Maharaja Mac ("King" Mac), has two pressed chicken patties. Similarly, almost all dairy products in India come from water buffalo. Milk, yogurt, curd, butter and cheese all are from water buffalo - ice cream too! Only babies in India are permitted to drink milk from cows.
So if they don't kill cows, why is India noted for "fine leather" products?
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