The Telangana government launched the website on Monday to facilitate the buying and selling of cattle online.

The state said that the website - pashubazar.telangana.gov.in - would save the farmers transportation costs, as they need not keep taking them to markets.

The New Indian Express reported that Special Chief Secretary, Animal Husbandry, Suresh Chanda launched the website, which was developed with National Informatics Centre's (NIC) support.

The TNIE report also quoted Animal Husbandry assistant director V Jagannatha Chary as saying that the new cattle rules issued by the Central government would be applicable to the online sale of the animals too.

"Taking animals physically to weekly markets involves expenditure on travel, care of animal and day long loss of wages/work for the farmer. Further, if animal could not be sold in weekly market, it has to again travel back home. This platform will eliminate all that and create wide publicity for sale of his animals so that farmer gets better price," a message on the website reads.

The website also mentions that the limit for number of animals that can be registered for sale at one time, is five. 

Each registration on the website will only be valid for 30 days, following which it will be removed automatically.

The farmers have the option of selling buffaloes, bullocks, cows, dogs, goats and sheep.

Last month the Central government proposed to start a unique identity system for cattle, in the Supreme Court.

The Centre said that the Unique Identification Number will consist of all the records of identification details such as age, breed, sex, lactation, height, body, colour, horn type, tail switch, special mark etc.

The Centre claimed that the identification numbers would help track cows and prevent inter-state and inter-country smuggling.

IANS inputs