AHMEDABAD: The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) recognised 59 gaushalas across the country during 2023-24 to 2025-26, but released financial assistance to only seven of them, with Gujarat receiving none despite accounting for three recognitions, all in 2025-26, according to a Lok Sabha reply.
The three Gujarat gaushalas, located in Amreli, Mehsana and Patan, accounted for 5.1% of the national recognitions, but received zero financial assistance.
The AWBI’s state-wise data shows that no gaushala from Gujarat was recognised in 2023-24 or 2024-25. Its tally of three came in 2025-26. The financial assistance column records 0 against all three, giving Gujarat a zero funding-to-recognition outcome during the period.
Nationally, only seven of the 59 recognised gaushalas got assistance, meaning just 11.9%. The AWBI released Rs 20,22,950 during the three years. Of this, Rs 90,000 was released in 2024-25 and Rs 19,32,950 in 2025-26 and no assistance in 2023-24.
The annexure shows that several beneficiaries received substantial portions of the limited assistance. A gaushala in Beed, Maharashtra, received Rs 10.74 lakh, while another in Osmanabad received Rs 4.39 lakh. Other releases went to gaushalas in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
However, the Union government has not stated in the supplied Lok Sabha reply whether the three gaushalas in Gujarat applied for assistance, whether their applications were rejected or whether they were not considered for release of funds.
The national figures show that funding itself was limited, with 52 of the 59 recognised gaushalas receiving no assistance. The data therefore points to a clear gap between recognition and financial assistance in Gujarat.
However, the board’s website shows that it released a grant of Rs 90,000 to Jamnagar-based Smt Labhuben Ranchhoddas Barchha Charitable Trust in 2025-26 under the “regular grant” category, without mentioning if the grant was meant for maintaining a gaushala. The entire grant amount for the country for this period was Rs 1,05,18,800.
The board was set up way back in 1962 to help the government enforce humanitarian laws for animal welfare.