Uttar Pradesh govt equips 'gaushalas' with oximeters; clarifies 'for staff, not cows'

As Uttar Pradesh's COVID conundrum continues, the Yogi government on Thursday, ordered to install oximeters and thermal scanners in the state's gaushalas'. While the state govt's press release claimed that the oximeters were for the cows, an official later clarified that the medical equipment was meant for people who work at the gaushalas'. Uttar Pradesh has 2,62,474 active cases and 11,22,669 and 14,151 fatalities.

UP orders gaushalas to be equipped with oximeters

A recent press release from Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's office also said the state government has issued instructions to set up help desks in every district for the welfare of cows, taking forward its cow protection agenda. The government has issued instructions that all cowsheds must strictly follow the COVID-19 protocol, and made wearing masks and frequent thermal screening mandatory there. The press release on cowsheds said the gaushalas' will be equipped with all the medical equipment such as oximeters and thermal scanners for cows and other animals as well. Uttar Pradesh government has already passed an ordinance for protecting cows called - Cow Slaughter Prevention (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 - imposing 10 years of imprisonment and up to 5 lakh fine for illegal transportation of bovine animals and cow slaughter.

700 school staff died due to COVID

The biggest tragedy in UP amid COVID has been the death of 700 school staff who died due to COVID while on poll duty for UP Panchayat polls. As per reports,  the Uttar Pradeshiya Prathmik Shikshak Sangh has written to UP CM Adityanath and SEC, listing names of all the deceased who died due to contracting COVID-19 on poll duty, demanding to defer counting on May 2. The Allahabad High Court had pulled up the Yogi govt over the deaths asking why action should not be taken against it for not enforcing Covid protocols. In reply, the state government has denied the allegations and said it has no proof that the teachers died during poll duty and maintained that it did not want to hold the panchayat elections, but was forced to conduct it before 30 April due to an HC order. 

Counting was not deferred and BJP managed to win 900 of the 3030 Zila panchayat wards it contested, while SP claims to have won 1000 seats, BSP 300 seats, Congress and AAP bagged 70 seats each. This setback to BJP comes a year before the crucial UP polls - where Yogi Adityanath is eyeing a second term. Over 8.69 lakh posts were up for grabs in these polls. Of these posts, more than 7.32 lakh seats were in the gram panchayat wards, 58,176 in the gram panchayats, 75,852 in the kshetra (block) panchayats and 3,050 in the zila panchayats. In all, there were over 12.89 lakh candidates in the poll fray, of which 3.19 lakh candidates won unopposed.