Speed up fodder collection: Min

Lucknow: The state govt on Monday said that it has directed officials to accelerate the ongoing fodder collection campaign for cattle shelters across the state. It warned of strict action against officers failing to meet targets or showing negligence in implementation.

Reviewing the ‘Bhusa Sangrahan Abhiyan’, launched on April 15, animal husbandry and dairy development minister Dharampal Singh expressed dissatisfaction over the poor performance of Hamirpur, Varanasi, Pratapgarh, Auraiya and Ayodhya districts. He said adequate availability of fodder and cattle feed must be ensured at all cow shelters in the state.

He stressed that fodder collection, cattle feed management and operation of cow shelters should be carried out in a mission-oriented manner. Singh instructed officials to complete the fodder collection target within the stipulated timeline and expedite the tender process for fodder and silage procurement.

He further directed that all cow shelters must have sufficient stock of fodder, green feed, clean drinking water, shaded areas, medicines and other basic facilities. The minister instructed officials to conduct timely vaccination drives. Singh laid special emphasis on setting up biogas plants in cow shelters.

Additional chief secretary, animal husbandry and dairy development Mukesh Meshram directed officials to verify cow shelters being operated by NGOs. Officials informed the meeting that UP has 7,386 cow shelters housing 12,37,694 cattle.

The total fodder collection target for the state has been fixed at 1.37 crore quintals, out of which 1.11 crore quintals have already been collected. Jalaun, Muzaffarnagar, Noida, Mirzapur and Mahoba emerged as the top-performing districts in the fodder collection campaign.