Uttar Pradesh Budget: Rs 612.6 crore for stray cattle, gaushalas
Lucknow, Feb 7 : The Adityanath government will spend over Rs 600 crore on cattle welfare and the construction and maintenance of gaushalas in the financial year 2019-20.
The announcement comes amid reports of farmers in several districts locking up stray cattle in schools and public health centres after suffering damage to their crops.
An amount of Rs 247.60 crore has been proposed for maintenance and construction of gaushalas in rural areas, state Finance Minister Rajesh Agarwal said in his budget speech.
For 'Kanha Gaushala' and cattle shelter scheme in urban areas, Rs 200 crore has been earmarked, he said.
In addition, Agarwal said, a special cess has been imposed on liquor sales in the state. Of the total cess collected, an estimated Rs 165 crore will be used on maintenance of stray cattle.
The government was seeking support from the other departments as well in this regard, he said. A provision of Rs 64 crore has been made to set up 10,000 units under the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Small Dairy Scheme.
An amount of Rs 56 crore has been set aside for establishment of a new dairy in Mathura. Rs 5 crore has been allotted for various programmes under the Uttar Pradesh Dairy Policy, 2018.
A proposal of Rs 93 crore is there for strengthening, restructuring and expansion of milk unions and societies, training, technical inputs, cattle breeding and health schemes.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Philippines president declares national energy emergency amid global fuel supply risks
Manila: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has declared a national energy emergency, citing the “imminent danger” to the country’s fuel supply due to global disruptions linked to the ongoing conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran, Al Jazeera reported.
“The declaration of a state of national energy emergency will enable the government… to implement responsive and coordinated measures under existing laws to address the risks posed by disruptions in the global energy supply and the domestic economy,” Al Jazeera quoted Marcos Jr as saying.
As part of the emergency response, a committee has been formed to ensure the orderly movement, supply, distribution and availability of fuel, food, medicine, agricultural products and other essential goods, he said.
The emergency declaration, which will remain in force for one year, allows the government to procure fuel in advance and take action against hoarding and profiteering.
Authorities are also empowered to take action against the hoarding, profiteering and manipulation of petroleum product supplies.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said the country currently has about 45 days of fuel supply based on current consumption. She added that the government is working to procure 1 million barrels of oil from countries within and outside Southeast Asia to build a buffer stock, though uncertainties remain.
Meanwhile, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said the government is in talks with Washington to secure exemptions that would allow for the purchase of oil from countries under US sanctions.
The announcement comes amid rising public discontent. Transport workers, commuters, and consumer groups have planned a two-day strike to protest fuel price hikes and what they call inadequate government response.
Piston, a federation of public transport associations, described the declaration of a national energy emergency as a “superficial band-aid that deliberately ignores the structural roots of the fuel crisis”.
“If the government genuinely intends to protect transport workers and commuters from this geopolitical crisis, it would immediately suspend the Excise Tax and Value-Added Tax on petroleum products to drastically lower prices overnight,” Al Jazeera quoted Piston as saying.
Renato Reyes Jr, of the progressive civil society coalition Bayan, said the declaration “does not address the basic problem of runaway oil prices and [their] effects on the mass transport system and other sectors in the country”.
As part of the government’s mitigation measures, students and workers in some cities are being given free access to bus rides, and the government has started to provide a 5,000 peso subsidy for public transport workers, including motorcycle taxi drivers, to help them cope with rising fuel costs.
