In a what seems to be a bizarre dictate, Uttar Pradesh government has asked senior officials to spend Diwali at cow shelters. The state’s Gau Sewa Aayog, nodal body in-charge of bovine welfare in UP, issued decrees to district magistrates to replicate deepotsav in cow shelters.

Ayog chairman Shyam Nandan Singh said, “Cows are worshipped after Diwali, so there’s nothing wrong in celebrating deepotsav at gaushalas.”

As soon as the commission’s order landed in offices of DMs, district authorities were on their toes to arrange paraphernalia to celebrate the festival of lights with cows.

However, the order created a sharp situation in districts where lakhs of cows are housed in thousands of cow shelters and authorities would have to mobilise funds to buy lakhs of diyas and hundreds of litres of mustard oil from the local market on short notice.

The department is already facing cash crunch for buying fodder and such a directive will only increase the burden.