Kollam: In a bizarre incident, five cows on a farm died after they were fed excessive porotta. The cows belonged to dairy farmer Hasbulla, who runs a farm in Vattapara here. Nine cows are under treatment. Minister of Animal Husbandry J Chinchu Rani, who visited the farm, said Hasbulla would be compensated for his loss.

According to the Animal Welfare Department, the cows died due to tremors in the stomach caused by consuming excessive porotta -- flatbread made from maida -- and jackfruit. The postmortem of the cattle was conducted under the leadership of District Animal Welfare Officer Dr D Shine Kumar.

According to Dr Shine, porotta causes digestive issues and excessive consumption of jackfruit, rice porridge etc. can lead to acidosis and dehydration-induced death in cows.