500 Cows Starve to Death in Rajasthan Govt Gaushala, Probe Ordered

The Hingonia gaushala near Jaipur has been providing shelter to over 8000 cows.

The cows reportedly died of starvation during a strike of the contractual workers at the Hingonia Gaushala, who are protesting not receiving their dues of two months. Photo used for representational purpose. (Photo: Reuters)

After 500 cows died at a Rajasthan government-run gaushala near Jaipur over the last two weeks, the anti-corruption bureau has now announced a probe into the alleged neglect of duty by government officials.

While the 266 contractual workers at Jaipur Municipal Corporation’s Hingonia cow rehabilitation centre have been on strike since 21 July, to protest not receiving their dues for May and June, officials said the bovines starved to death.

There was reportedly cow dung and fodder up to their necks after it turned into slush from rainwater seepage.

Bad planning turned the place into a quicksand of sorts. The cows died after being trapped for days on end without food and water.

Bajrang Singh, Additional Superintendent of Police, Anti-corruption Bureau told <i>Hindustan Times</i>

The corporation reportedly took action only on Friday, “deploying heavy duty machines to evacuate the cattle.”

Following this, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje’s office released a statement saying that the cows were already sick and malnourished.

The cowshed has been providing shelter to over 8000 cows who were taken care of by a team of 24 veterinarians and 24 livestock assistants.

The CMO’s statement said that the government was doing everything to save the animals, with Rs 10.78 crore being spent in financial year 2015-16 for their maintenance. Additionally, Rs 2.16 crores were spent on other infrastructure, it said.

Meanwhile, the Congress and the VHP blamed the BJP government in Rajasthan for the “poor” condition of cow shelters in the state and demanded a rescue campaign for the sick cows.

Leader of Opposition Rameshwar Dudi visited the centre and held the state government and its officers “responsible” for its “sorry state of affairs”.

The BJP does politics in the name of cows but when it comes to their state of affairs, the government shows no interest. It is a matter of shame.

Rameshwar Dudi, Leader of Opposition

The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal too targeted the Raje government for its “inhuman behaviour” with the cows at the shelter.

The state government though claimed that the arrangements were well in place at the Centre and the mud was being cleared.

(With inputs from PTI, The Indian Express and The Hindustan Times)