Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 31 Jul: The Dehradun District Administration has sanctioned the establishment of new shelters to ensure the protection and proper care of stray cattle in Dehradun. In this regard, District Magistrate Savin Bansal today issued clear instructions for the effective operation and monitoring of Gosadans. Chairing a meeting of the District Level Monitoring Committee for the operation of cow shelters, Bansal emphasised the need for robust procedures to safeguard the well-being and maintenance of the existing shelters, as well as to facilitate the establishment of new facilities as part of the district plan.
The DM directed the Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) to ensure that veterinary doctors from the local area conduct a compulsory head count of cattle in all shelters twice a week. Furthermore, the Animal Welfare Board has been tasked with carrying out random inspections of these Gosadans to maintain vigilance over their functioning. The DM also gave his approval for a new shelter with a capacity of 150 cattle at Kheruwa in the Kalsi block, for which an amount of Rs 49.98 lakhs has been sanctioned, with instructions that its proposal should be included in the district plan at the earliest. In addition, earlier approvals by the DM include Rs 22 lakhs for a shelter in Vikas Nagar Chharba and Rs 27.03 lakhs for another in Premnagar (Mauza Arcadia Grant), which are all part of a coordinated effort to provide safe havens for stray cattle.
During the meeting, Bansal stressed that all cattle residing in the shelters must be provided with regular health check-ups, and that animals suffering from injury or illness should receive immediate treatment and necessary vaccinations. He underlined the importance of supplying the animals with a balanced diet, clean drinking water, and a hygienic living environment to ensure their overall well-being. Expressing strong dissatisfaction with Dehradun Municipal Corporation’s delay in the tagging of cattle kept in their registered shelters, the DM directed the Municipal Corporation officials to complete the tagging of all animals without fail and submit a compliance report promptly.
The CVO shared that there are at present ten registered Gosadans across Dehradun district, consisting of four in Sahaspur, two each in Vikas Nagar and Doiwala, and one each in Chakrata and Dharampur. At the meeting, details were provided regarding the expenditure incurred on running these shelters in the previous financial year, progress on cattle tagging, and proposals for the creation of new Gosadans.
The Deputy Director of the Animal Welfare Board informed the committee that a special application has been developed for registering animals in these shelters, which is expected to greatly facilitate daily monitoring and will be launched in the near future.
Among those present at the meeting included Chief Development Officer (CDO) Abhinav Shah, Deputy Municipal Commissioner Santosh Kumar Pandey, Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) Dr Satish Joshi, Deputy Director of Animal Welfare Board Dr Urvashi, along with all other members of the monitoring committee.
