Chandigarh, January 25: Haryana Chief Minister Sh Nayab Singh Saini, on the occasion of his birthday today, took another significant step towards fulfilling his sacred resolve of serving Mother Cow (Gau Mata). At a programme held at Mata Mansa Devi Gaudham here, he distributed cheques amounting to Rs. 1 crore 22 lakh 46 thousand as fodder grants to 14 Gaushalas in the district.
On the occasion, the Chief Minister also announced to give Rs. 20 lakh for the strengthening and renovation of the unpaved road leading to the ancient Shiva temple located on Saketari Hill.
Earlier, Chief Minister Sh Nayab Singh Saini, accompanied by his wife Smt. Suman Saini, served cows at the Mata Mansa Devi Gaudham by feeding them fodder and jaggery and seeking their blessings. He also performed Gau Pujan (cow worship) on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, Chief Minister Sh Nayab Singh Saini said that in India, the cow has been revered since ancient times and accorded the status of a mother. According to mythological beliefs, all gods and goddesses reside in the cow. Recognizing this significance, religious and social organizations have long emphasized the establishment of Gaushalas. He said that the present government has taken several important steps towards the development of Gaushalas, cow protection, and the promotion of natural farming. Over the past 11 years, registered Gaushalas have been provided Rs. 270 crores as fodder grants.
The Chief Minister said that in 2014–15, the Haryana Gau Seva Ayog had a budget of only Rs. 2 crore. After assuming responsibility for public service, the government began increasing the allocation, and in the current financial year, the total budget has been enhanced to Rs. 595 crore. He said that until 2014, there were only 215 registered Gaushalas in Haryana, housing about 1.75 lakh Gauvansh. At present, the state has 686 registered cow shelters, providing care to approximately 4 lakh Gauvansh. Solar power plants have been installed in 330 Gaushalas, and work to install solar power plants in the remaining shelters will be completed soon.
In addition, electricity is being provided to cow shelters at a subsidized rate of Rs. 2 per unit. Earlier, a 1 percent fee was charged on land registration for Gaushalas; however, new Gaushalas are now exempt from paying stamp duty on land registration.
The Chief Minister said that Gaushalas; had been facing difficulties due to the lack of proper arrangements for regular veterinary health check-ups of Gauvansh. The present government has addressed this issue as well. He recalled that on August 5, 2024, he had announced that a veterinary doctor would be deputed one day a week to Gaushalas housing more than 3,000 gauvansh, while in Gaushalas with fewer than 3,000 gauvansh, a VLDA would be on duty one day a week. He said that this announcement has now been implemented. In addition, mobile veterinary services are also being provided to Gaushalas.
Sh Nayab Singh Saini said that freeing the state from stray cattle is a priority for the government. To achieve this objective, two cow sanctuaries have been established, one in village Nain in Panipat district and another in village Dhandur in Hisar district. These sanctuaries are equipped with proper facilities for sheds, water, and fodder. An amount of Rs. 8 crore has already been released for these sanctuaries, and approximately 5,000 Gauvansh have been provided shelter there. The Chief Minister said that in line with his announcement to provide a grant of Rs. 10 lakh per gaushala to 200 Gaushalas for the construction of cowshed for the rehabilitation of gauvansh, sheds have already been constructed in 51 gaushalas .
The Chief Minister said that effective measures must be taken to restore the respect accorded to cows and to conserve and promote indigenous cow breeds. In this direction, Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi has implemented the National Gokul Mission for the conservation and promotion of indigenous breeds. He said that cattle rearers of indigenous Hariana, Sahiwal, and Belahi breeds are being provided incentives ranging from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 20,000, based on milk production capacity. In addition, efforts are being made to improve the quality and breed of gauvansh housed in cow shelters.
The Chief Minister said that the Haryana government is making comprehensive efforts to make Gaushalas self-reliant. Gaushalas are producing natural phenyl, phosphate-rich organic fertilizers, cow-dung utensils, natural paint made from cow dung, pots, lamps, incense sticks, soap, and other products using cow dung and cow urine. He said that the Haryana Gauvansh Research Center at Sukhdarshanpur, Panchkula, has been established for research and development of Panchagavya-based products. He further said that the Haryana government has implemented a stringent law, the Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and gausamvardhan Act, 2015, for the protection of cows. The Act provides for imprisonment of up to 10 years for those involved in cow slaughter.
Chairman, Haryana Gau Seva Ayog Sh Shravan Kumar Garg, MLA Kalka Smt. Shakti Rani Sharma, former Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Sh Gian Chand Gupta, Additional Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Dr. Saket Kumar, Director General of Information, Public Relations and Languages Department Sh Makarand Pandurang, Principal Secretary of Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department Sh Vijay Singh Dahiya, OSD in the department Dr. Dharmender, State Vice President Smt. Banto Kataria, District President Sh Ajay Mittal, former Mayor Sh Kulbhushan Goyal, OSD to the Chief Minister Sh BB Bharti, Media Secretary to the Chief Minister Sh Praveen Attrey, Trustee of Mata Mansa Devi Gaudham Sh Deepak Bansal, representatives of Gaushalas and cow devotees were present on this occasion.
