Amid fund crunch, cow cess shortage to affect gaushalas

MAYOR SAID THE MC REMAINS COMMITTED TO IMPROVING CONDITIONS AT UT'S GAUSHALAS

- HT Correspondent

CHANDIGARH: Already reeling under severe fund crunch, the Chandigarh municipal corporation (MC) is now short of cow cess revenue, which has proved to be a stumbling block in cow welfare as expenditure incurred for the upkeep of gaushalas is more than the earnings. The revenue is expected to drop further in the current financial year.

Informing mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla of the financial constraints faced by the MC due to a drastic reduction in cow cess revenue, medical officer of health (MOH) Dr Inderdeep Kaur stated that the civic body received ₹20.25 crore from the excise department in the financial year 2022-23, and this amount dropped significantly to ₹5.78 crore in 2023-24 and is expected to further decline to ₹2.89 crore in 2024-25. "This shortfall has placed a heavy financial burden on the MC, as the annual expenditure on cow welfare stands at approximately ₹12.64 crore," she added.