AHMEDABAD: Ramesh Patni , a cattle breeder in Kheralu (Mehsana district) was a desperate man on Thursday morning. Four of his herd of 40 goats who had become tipsy after drinking seized liquor bottles that had been destroyed by the police, were still unconscious nearly 40 hours of their drinking binge. However, when he took the drunk goats to the local veterinary clinic, they slowly came back to their senses.

Patni's woes began on Tuesday evening when he found that many of his goats, who had been grazing on gauchar land near Gorisheri Road in Kheralu, had become unconscious or were behaving strangely. Frantic enquiries revealed that just hours ago, Kheralu police had destroyed 11,500 bottles of liquor that were seized in the morning in the presence of the SDM, DSP and police personnel. While police presence at the spot was removed three hours after the bottles were flattened by a roller, nearly 60% of the liquor was absorbed in the earth. The goats had apparently drunk the liquor that had collected in puddles on the uneven land or seeped into the crevices of the earth.

"I called for a handcart and took the unconscious goats home. Later, most regained consciousness but they were unusually boisterous. I rarely pack them in a cattle pen but that night I had no option. I lock them up for the night and kept them locked for the whole of Wednesday," said Patni. On Thursday morning, four goats had still not recovered from the hangover and had to be taken to hospital .

Kheralu police inspector S H Bawa said they had come to know that goats had become tipsy after drinking liqour that had collected on the gauchar land. "We had left the place only after most of the liquor was absorbed in the ground but some of it must have seeped into the land," said a bemused Bawa.

In the past, cows had got drunk after drinking from liquor destroyed by the police on the outskirts of Ahmedabad.

