The Madhya Pradesh government will open 1000 gaushalas or cow shelters across the state where 1 lakh cows would be provided shelter in the first phase of its programme for protecting the revered bovine.
"These 1000 shelters would be visible by May as the 6 months target is set for starting the first phase of conservation of cows," Bhupendra Gupta, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Chief Minister Kamal Nath, told ANI.
He said that the cost incurred would be around Rs 450 crore and the scheme is a first of its kind in the state.
"There were no government-run gaushalas in the state. This scheme is the first of its kind in the state. The work for establishing the 1000 cow shelters in the first phase has already been started," said Gupta.
Gupta also said that about 6 lakh cows need protection in the state, owing to which the government is working on increasing the capacity of private cow shelters.
"In the first phase itself, the capacity of 614 private cow shelters would be increased to 60,000. So in the first phase itself, we will provide shelter to 1,60,000 cows," he added.
Gupta asserted that a proposal has been put forth to increase the expenditure per cow to Rs 20 from the present Rs 4.
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