City civic body MCD on Wednesday told the Delhi high court that it has framed a set of new norms to ensure that stray cattle, caught by it, are auctioned only after giving sufficient time and opportunity to their owners to reclaim and relocate them.

The municipal council of Delhi made this submission to the bench of chief justice Dipak Misra and justice Sanjiv Khanna in an affidavit filed in response to a public interest lawsuit alleging that the civic body auctioned stray cattle, seized by it, hurriedly and clandestinely to butchers without giving the cattle owners any time to reclaim and relocate their lost cattle.

The PIL had been filed by the Citizens for the Welfare and Protection of Animals, a registered trust. It had said that its members, during some of their recent visits to Timarpur Cattle Pound, had found sick animals being auctioned to butchers in a clandestine manner.

The petitioner had also sought appointment of trained staff and veterinarians for the cattle pounds to provide the animals better facilities and treatment.

The bench earlier had sought a status report from the MCD and the Animal Welfare Board on the PIL, while directing the civic agency to appoint a nodal officer to curb the possibility of illegal and clandestine auctioning of cattle by cattle pound officials.

With the MCD filing its affidavit today, the court sought replies from the petitioner as well as the management of Timarpur Cattle Pound and fixed September 28 for further hearing.