Grants for cattle camps curtailed after anomalies

After irregularities were unearthed in cattle feed camps being provided financial aid by the state, the cabinet has decided to curtail the grants given to these camps.

The state has 336 cattle camps in drought-hit districts such as Solapur, Ahmednagar, Osmanabad, Beed, Pune, Sangli and Satara, which house 2,99,239 animals.

The state government has spent Rs180.61 crore on these camps, which were started in July last year due to the drought in Maharashtra.

However, a surprise inspection of a cattle feed camp at Sangola in Solapur district had shown how contractors were faking the number of animals in these camps to pocket the government grants. The camp for 78,979 animals at Sangola had registered nearly 9,000 non-existent cattle, leading to the contractor allegedly pinching lakhs of rupees daily.

The state presently gives out Rs80 for large animals like cows and buffaloes in these camps, and Rs40 for smaller animals like sheep and goats. However, the Centre gives out only Rs32 per animal to the state government.

After the irregularities were discovered, the cabinet has decided to reduce the grants’ ceiling to Rs60 for large animals and Rs30 for smaller animals from January 1, 2013.