Lucknow, May 12 (PTI) In a bid to create employment opportunities for the rural youth, the Uttar Pradesh government will develop about 7,500 cow shelters across the state into organic fertiliser production centres, officials said on Tuesday.
The objective is not to limit cow protection only to religious or cultural sentiments, but to link it with farmers’ income, natural farming, women’s empowerment and rural employment generation, an official statement said.
Chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Cow Service Commission, Shyam Bihari Gupta, said that currently, there are around 12.5 lakh cattle in nearly 7,500 cow shelters across the state, which the state government plans to develop into organic fertiliser production centres.
A strategy has been prepared to promote a natural farming model based on cow dung and urine to reduce farming costs and increase farmers’ income, Gupta said.
One cow produces approximately 5 litres of urine and 10 kg of dung every day, which will be used to produce organic fertiliser, natural pesticides, and other products to reduce dependence on chemicals and improve soil fertility, the official said.
The state government has approved Rs 2,000 crore for the cow protection campaign, while a separate provision of Rs 100 crore has been made for the establishment of about 155 large cow protection centres, he said.
The official also said that women self-help groups and farmer-producer organisations (FPOs) will now be roped in the operation of the shelters. PTI ABN ABN ARI ARI
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