As COVID-19 deaths continue to dominate the headlines, the Yogi Adityanath government is taking forward its cow protection agenda and has issued directives to set up help desks for protection of cows in every district.
This comes at a time UP chief minister is accused of downplaying the severity of the coronavirus crisis in the state.
According to news agency IANS, the saffron party led government has also issued instructions that all the cow shelters must strictly follow the coronavirus protocols.
The reports say that the cow shelters will be equipped with all the medical equipment’s such as oximeters and thermal scanners for cows.
There are over 5,268 cow protection centres in Uttar Pradesh.
Uttar Pradesh is among India’s worst-hit states.
Last week, Adityanath demanded that the property of anyone spreading the news of oxygen shortage and mismanagement of COVID-19 crisis in the state be seized.
He also said that none of the state’s hospitals lacked oxygen, although scenes have unfolded of an overwhelmed health system in the largest Indian state.
The Allahabad High Court criticised the management of coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh. It said: “We are at pain in observing that death of COVID-19 patients just for non supplying of oxygen to the hospitals is a criminal act and not less than a genocide by those who have been entrusted the task to ensure continuous procurement and supply chain of the liquid medical oxygen.”
