Rajasthan plans cow welfare fund, to ask staff to donate

Rajasthan will soon have a Chief Minister’s Cow Welfare Fund, Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said on Monday. The announcement came after the HM chaired a meeting of the cabinet sub-committee that made the recommendation, among several others, on cow welfare.

Kataria said the CM’s Cow Welfare Fund or Mukhyamantri Gau Sanrakshan Kosh will be funded by introducing 10 per cent surcharge on mandi tax, by reserving 5 per cent of corporate social responsibility funds and levying 5 per cent surcharge on temple trusts under Devasthan Department of the government, which has an annual revenue of Rs 5 crore or more.

Besides, every government employee will be “requested” to give Rs 1-3 daily, based on their pay scale, for donation to the welfare fund.

“We are going to take some very important measures for protecting cows in the state,” the Home Minister said.

The measures come soon after the government faced flak over thousands of deaths at the Hingonia cowshed and rehabilitation centre in Jaipur. Till July, the average number of deaths at Hingonia each month was 1,053, despite the cowshed having an annual budget of Rs 10.78 crore.

Another recommendation is a ban on burning of fodder and setting up a fodder bank in each district. Read more….

Rajasthan plans cow welfare fund, to ask staff to donate