UP: Encourage people to adopt a cow, CM tells mayors, corporators

Admitting that urban local bodies are facing the problem of stray cattle, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Thursday told mayors and corporators to encourage people to adopt a cow by paying for their upkeep.

During an online interaction with the representatives of local urban bodies, the chief minister said that while the state government has made efforts to reduce the problem of stray cattle, the need is to make society aware so that families could adopt a cow.

“Gaye kewal bhusa hi nahi khayegi, gaye ke liye kuch hara chara bhi vyavastha karna parega… Gaye ke liye kuch acha choker ki vyavastha karni paregi. Tab woh hasta-pusth rahegi, anyatha kamjoor ho toh to uska bhi paap humare upar lagega (Cows would not only eat dry fodder, some green fodder should be arranged. Then only, the cows will stay healthy.

Otherwise, if the cows become weak, then the sin would fall on us),” the chief minister told the urban bodies representatives.

He directed the local bodies to fix an annual amount between Rs 300 and Rs 500 so that an individual could pay for the adoption of cows in his or her name.

He also told the representatives to ensure that the tradition of immersing the bodies in the river has to be stopped.
“Aapne dekha hoga, tamam log antim sansakar karne ki bajaye mritya shahreer ko nadi mein pravahit kar dete they… Yeh achi sthiti nahi hi… Kabhi kisi ne parampara ke roop mein apnaya hoga, uske kuch niyam rahe honge… Lekin aaj inti bhari abaadi ho chuki hai ki un logon ko samjhayen ki aisa na karen (You have seen that people instead of cremating the body immerse it in the river… This is not a good situation… It could have been a tradition and there could have been some rules, but today we have a huge population. We have to make them understand not to do it anymore),” Adityanath said, and added that urban local bodies should help perform the last rites of those whose families do not have enough money for cremation.

Uttar Pradesh recently saw several incidents of bodies, most of them suspected to be of Covid patients, floating in the rivers in the state.

Expressing apprehension of a third wave of Covid during the monsoon, the chief minister said that local bodies should play a significant role in conducting special cleanliness, de-silting, sanitisation and fogging drives to not just fight the pandemic but also communicable disease like encephalitis, malaria, chikunguniya, kala azar among others.

The chief minister asked local bodies to also install CCTV cameras, and encourage banks, petrol pumps, post offices to also install CCTV cameras to ensure safety and security in the area.

Adityanath said CCTV footages have been helpful in solving many crimes in the state.

The CM also asked the local bodies to become financially independent and properly impose a ban on the use of plastic and thermacol-based materials like cups, glasses and plates, and added that such a ban would automatically reduce the garbage on the road.

Governor Anandiben Patel, who also attended the meeting virtually, told the local bodies to ensure water supply, and proper sewage and solid waste management.