“The cows were even being sent to other countries before I took over as the Uttar Pradesh chief minister. It was a challenge before me to protect the holy animal which I did to my full ability,” Adityanath said.
He said the steps taken to protect stray cattle too have borne fruits and about 5.24 lakh cows are kept in government-run shelters, while more than eight lakh of them have been housed in ‘Kanha Upvan’, the cow shelters being run by local bodies in the state.
Speaking at a book release function at his official residence on Saturday, a day before the ‘Gopashtami‘, a festival dedicated to cows and Lord Krishna, the chief minister underlined the religious importance of cows.
He said that the ‘Gopashtami’ has been a tradition followed for thousands of years.
Adityanath released the book ‘Gau-Lok Ki Ore’ authored by Shivani Sharma, the UP Government said in a statement issued here on Saturday.