Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Monday said special efforts must be made for ensuring proper care of stray cows in the Gau Sadans, particularly during the winters.
After inaugurating Gau Sadan at Sunni in Shimla district, he said the government was providing an assistance of Rs 500 per cow per month to the Gau Sadans in the state under the Gau Vansh Yojna.
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He also appealed to the people to come forward to contribute towards the cow sanctuaries and Gau Sadans.
“The state government has constituted HP Gau Seva Ayog to provide shelter to the destitute cows roaming on the roads and to make arrangements for their fodder and management. According to the recently conducted 20th Animal Census of the Government of India, there are 36,311 destitute animals across the state.
The government has released Rs 31.16 crore for the establishment and strengthening of cow sanctuaries and Gau Sadans in different parts of the state,” he added.
He stated that 220 Gau Sadans were also being operated by Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) in the state out of which 127 Gau Sadans have been registered with HP Gau Seva Aayog.
In addition, the state government has recently signed an MoU with a private company, under which the said company would provide shelter to about 3000 cows per cow sanctuary on PPP mode without the assistance of the government.
Besides, a cow sanctuary has been established in Kotla Badog area of Sirmaur district by spending an amount of Rs 1.67 crore for providing shelter to destitute cows and Rs 2.97 crore has been spent on the construction of Handa Kudi Cow sanctuary in district Solan.
State Animal Husbandry minister Virender Kanwar said Gau Sadan at Sunni would have capacity to house 500 cows and would ensure proper shelter for the stray cattle.
The BJP government, soon after taking over the reins of the state, decided to establish Gau Sewa Ayog to provide proper shelter to abandoned cows, he added.
