Punjab‑Kashmir Dispute Over Illegal Cattle Levy Ends as Transit Vehicles Cleared

The strike that began on July 3 was triggered by allegations that contractors at checkpoints such as Shambhu Border and Madhavpur were extorting illegal "cattle levy" from animal transport trucks passing through Punjab. These vehicles carried livestock from Rajasthan and Delhi toward Jammu and Kashmir, causing a sharp shortage of mutton in the valley. Following direct talks between Umar Abdullah and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, the rural development department instructed police to allow uninterrupted passage of such trucks.