Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has flagged off an ambulance service for the cows. According to reports, these ambulances will cater to the needs of the cows under the ‘Gauvansh Chikitsa Mobile Vans’service. Initially, five ambulances were flagged off to cover Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Mathura and Allahabad. The ambulance will have a veterinary doctor along with an assistant to rescue ill or injured cows and transport them to ‘gau shalas’ or take them for treatment to the veterinary hospital.
The UP government has also released a ‘gau seva toll free number’ to enable common people to ome forward and protect the cows. Reports suggest that the ambulance service will run in collaboration with the MNREGA Mazdoor Kalyan Sanghathan. Mazdoor Kalyan Sanghathan is an organization that claims to work for the welfare of the labourers and others employed in the informal sector.
The organisation has a presence in 5 states. A similar initiative to save cows was initiated in Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh a few days ago. According to a report in the Hindustan Times, Deputy Director of the Animal Department in Khargone Wilson Dawar had said : “Though there are veterinary hospitals, however, transporting an injured cow is a big issue…Many cows die because they can’t be easily lifted and transported from the road to the hospital.”
It also plans to take action against those people who abandon their cows once they stop giving milk, and also against municipal officials if cows are forced to eat polythene or plastic items dumped on the streets.
