Ropar MLA pulls up MC authorities for not collecting cow cess

Ropar AAP MLA Dinesh Chadha has pulled up the authorities of Municipal Council, Ropar, for not imposing cow cess in their area. He alleged that the MC authorities were not collecting cow cess imposed on various products in their respective areas across the district. Due to this, the MCs do not have enough funds to tackle the problem of stray cows, he said.

He said, “It was surprising to learn that the Municipal Councils (MCs) in the district are not imposing or collecting cow cess, even though they are fully authorised to do so.”

Under existing guidelines, MCs can collect a cow cess of Rs 1 per cement bag sold, Rs 5,500 per event from marriage palaces, and Rs 1,000 per diesel or petrol tank from petrol pump owners. “Had this cess been collected regularly, the revenue could have been used to maintain proper cow shelters and manage stray animals effectively,” Chadha said.

In a first case of its kind registered in Ropar district, the city police station of Ropar has booked Tajendra Sohar Dutt, a resident of Basha village located in Kandaghat area of Solan district of Himachal under Section 291 of BNS, for leaving his cattle open in Ropar district. The owner was traced from the tag attached to the ear of the cattle.

In the wake of Punjabi singer Rajveer Jawanda’s tragic death in a road accident involving stray cattle, the Ropar administration launched a major drive to remove stray animals from city streets.

Dinesh Chadha said that according to data from the Animal Husbandry Department, the last official cattle census conducted in 2019 recorded around 1.44 lakh stray cattle in Punjab, including nearly 5,000 in Ropar district alone. However, officials admit that no updated survey has been conducted since then, and sources within the department estimate that the number of stray animals may have nearly doubled in the past five years, he said.

Despite MLA’s initiative, the challenge remains significant. Municipal bodies and district administrations across Punjab, including Ropar, currently lack sufficient infrastructure to house the large population of stray cattle. Existing cow shelters are overcrowded and underfunded, making it nearly impossible to accommodate all stray animals.

The growing number of stray cattle has become a serious safety hazard on Punjab’s roads, leading to frequent accidents and loss of human life. With pressure mounting from both the public and political representatives, the Ropar administration now face the dual challenge of enforcing accountability among cattle owners while developing sustainable infrastructure for animal care.