Madhya Pradesh to have 'cow cabinet'; 1st meeting on Nov 22

Bhopal: The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has decided to set up a separate "cabinet" for the protection and promotion of the cow, and its members will be drawn from multiple departments, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced on Wednesday.

The maiden meeting of the "gau cabinet", said to be the first such body in the country which will have the chief minister among its members, will be held on November 22. The meeting will take place at a cow sanctuary.

"It has been decided to constitute a `gau cabinet' for the protection and fostering of 'godhan' (cow and its progeny) in the state," Chouhan tweeted in Hindi.

Reacting to the decision, the Opposition Congress said it falls short of the BJP's 2018 pre-poll promise of creating a separate cow ministry.

Ministers of Animal Husbandry, Forest, Panchayat and Rural Development, Revenue, Home and Farmers' Welfare departments will be part of this cabinet, the CM said.

"The first meeting will be held at 12 noon on November 22 to mark Gopashtami at Gau Sanctuary in Agar Malwa district," he added.

Necessary orders for the constitution of the cow cabinet have been issued, officials said.

Besides Chouhan, the cabinet will include Home Minister Narottam Mishra, Forest Minister Vijay Shah, Agriculture Minister Kamal Patel, Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Mahendra Singh Sisodia and Minister for Animal Husbandry Prem Singh Patel.

Six departments will execute the decisions of the gau-cabinet in a coordinated manner, Chouhan said in a statement later.

An action plan will be implemented for increasing the use of cow dung cakes ('kanda'). The making and marketing of Gau-Kasht (cow-wood) is being

encouraged at present, similarly efforts will be made to market other products made from cow milk, he said.