Gau Sewa Commission lies defunct
Three years after it was set up by the Parkash Singh Badal-led SAD-BJP government, the Punjab Gau Sewa Commission is lying virtually defunct.
The commission constituted for cow welfare, protection of desi breeds and dealing with stray cattle menace does not have a chairman or any non-official member except a vice-chairman. The three-year tenures of commission chairman Keemti Lal Bhagat and six members got over in January, but the government is yet to make fresh appointments. The panel is being run by officials.
“The fund flows dried up after the change in government, hitting the schemes and programmes for cow care and tackling the stray cattle problem. Not a single penny was provided and free power facility given to 472 gaushalas (cow shelters), housing 3.84 lakh heads of cattle, was also withdrawn last year,” said Bhagat. He was at the helm since 2009 – first as chairman of a board for three years and then adviser to then CM before heading the commission.
The commission had piloted the moves to set up stray cattle pounds, free power for private gaushalas, cess for cow care and removal of encroachments from grazing lands, besides stepping up efforts to check cow smuggling. Stray cattle pounds were established in almost all districts at a cost of ₹40 crore. “Badal promised another ₹32 crore for 10 sheds at each of these government-run cattle pounds, but the present government did not release any money. Cow cess is also not being spent on cow care ,” he said.
AAP legislator from Bholath Sukhpal Singh Khaira also recently said the government agencies had collected ₹15 crore by way of cow cess imposed in 2016, but over 1 lakh stray cattle were still roaming on the streets across the state. “The money collected from the taxpayers is not being used properly. Hundreds of people die due to accidents caused by stray cattle,” he wrote to the local government minister two months ago.
Commission vice-chairman Dargesh Kumar Sharma said he was holding meetings with district authorities to get cess money released for cow care. “The problem is that several municipal bodies are still to issue the notification for release and distribution of cow cess. I have asked for details of total cess collected till now,” he said. As for the appointment of new chairman and members, he said it was the prerogative of the state government. NAVNEET SHARMA
Badal promised ₹32 crore for 10 sheds at each govtrun cattle pounds, but the present government has not released any money. Cow cess is also not being spent on cow care
KEEMTI LAL BHAGAT, former chairman