Rajasthan government to felicitate those adopting stray cows; deputy CM Sachin Pilot says it will 'bring people together'

Jaipur: The Congress-led Rajasthan government has decided to honour those who adopt stray cows, on days of national importance, like Independence Day and Republic Day. The Directorate of Gopalan has issued a letter to all district collectors asking them to motivate donors, NGOs, social workers and cow lovers to adopt stray cows. The letter asked that cow adopters be felicitated on 26 January and 15 August. The Directorate of Gopalan of the state government works for cattle conservation, research and development. [caption id=“attachment_4975851” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image of cattle. Reuters[/caption] Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot on Monday said the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in the state had tried to create “hatred” on such issues.  “The previous government had tried to create hatred on such issues, but this government is working differently by bringing everyone together (on the issue),” he told reporters here. “The idea behind the step is to conserve cows with cooperation from people. Those who adopt stray cows and undertake welfare activities will be felicitated by district collectors on the occasion of Independence day and Republic day,” Vishram Meena, director of Gopalan, said. “The directorate issued a letter to all district collectors on 28 December, with details of the campaign for the conservation of stray cows. There are people who adopt stray animals in cow shelter homes. They celebrate their birthdays, wedding anniversaries and such occasions by spending time with their adopted cows. We have asked the collectors to push such initiatives,” he said. Meena said interested parties can give their proposal to their respective district collectors. After verification of the claims, the collectors will felicitate such people with a certificate at the district level, he added. The order also mentions that whoever wants to adopt cows can deposit the amount decided by the local cow shelter and can visit the cows anytime. “Those who want to keep the stray cows at their houses can also do so,” it added.