BHOPAL: Two days after the inaugural meeting of India’s first Gau Cabinet mulled imposing cess to fund cow protection and conservation in Madhya Pradesh, the Shivraj Singh-led BJP government is now studying similar cess levied in other states.
“We’ve sent the proposal to the finance department for deciding on how the cow cess can be levied without hurting the common man. The proposal also, includes how cow cess has already been levied in other states. Now it’s up to the finance department to decide the best possible way to levy the cess,” a senior bureaucrat of the state’s animal husbandry department told TNIE.
“In Rajasthan, cow cess is imposed on stamp duty, while in other states, including Haryana, UP and Punjab, it’s levied on purchase of high-end vehicles, two- and four-wheelers, liquor. We’ve sent all these details in the proposal to the finance department.”
According to key sources in the government, the possibility of the cow cess being levied on high-end/luxury vehicles and liquor seems more likely, as it will nor hurt the common man’s pocket.
On Sunday, the inaugural meeting of the Gau Cabinet chaired by Chouhan had mulled to impose cow cess in the state without hurting commoners pockets.