Ayodhya Is Making 'Special Coats' to Keep Their Cows Warm This Winter

Winter is coming, and it appears that we’re going to feel it even in places that are in the middle of heated politics. Which is why, in the city of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, state authorities have now decided that all cattle in the city absolutely need coats to protect them from the bitter assault of winter in northern India. In the state that is also a part of the “cow belt”—a region comprising Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh where beef is banned—it’s also worth mentioning that there's absolutely no snow here.

Earlier this month, the city saw the cementing of decades-long and controversial site for a Ram Mandir over what used to be an 18th century Babri Masjid. And now, the authorities are clearly on to more pressing issues like how to keep their cows warm. To do that, the Ayodhya Municipal Corporation will stitch up special coats for cows and bulls in the holy city, starting with 1,200 cattle in the Baishingpur shelter.

“Generally, cows are given jute bags to save them from the cold. But [the coats] keep falling off,” Rishikesh Upadhyay, the city’s mayor and BJP leader told The Indian Express. “So we thought of getting coats stitched for the cows. We are first going to get a few samples made of such coats. If they work, we will order more. A farmer, Rajju Pandey, has been given the contract to get these coats stitched.”

These coats are being stitched at a price of Rs 250 to Rs 300. But in keeping with Orwellian philosophy, the local government seems to have decided that while all animals are equal, some are more equal than the others. So, it has been decided that while cows will get a slick two-layered jute coat with an inner lining to keep them covered, bulls will only get one made from jute.

In fact, Niraj Shukla, Nagar Nigam Commissioner of Ayodhya, told IANS, “Three-layer coats for the calves are being prepared. We have asked for the use of soft clothes for the calves in the innermost layer apart from the jute which provides warmth to the body.” The end goal, he clarified, is to make sure that every cow in every cow shelter across India is #LivingTheirBestLife. “The cow shelter will also have a bonfire to save the cows from extreme cold,” added Shukla. “Paddy straw will be put on the floor to provide warmth to the cattle if they choose to sit.”

But as authorities prep to make the winter easier for the cows they consider so very sacred, people are calling it out as bullshit. Many are upset that such futile preparations are being made despite the rising unemployment and falling economy.

So it looks like this plan to keep the cows covered may just end up costing the government more than the jute fabric they bargained for.

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