GURUGRAM: The Haryana government believes hardened criminals lodged inside the state’s many jails will be reformed, if only they drink cow milk. This is why it has decided to set up gaushalas inside the jails. The state government also feels this will enable the inmates to earn money by working in the gaushalas.Talking to TOI on Wednesday, the chairman of Haryana Gau Sewa Ayog, Bhani Ram Mangla, said it was his idea to open gaushalas inside the district’s six jails. “I strongly feel that by drinking milk of cows that are provided shelter inside the jails, the inmates will get enlightened with wisdom, get reformed, and stop their criminal activities. They will also get an opportunity to tend the cows and earn wages in the process,” he said.While announcing the proposal on Tuesday, the Haryana chief minister said the state was considering jails with extra space to set up the gaushalas, to enable inmates to work in them and earn money. “Besides the inmates getting reformed, thousands of stray cows on Haryana’s roads will also get shelter. We have prepared an estimate of about Rs 10-12 crore, that will be spent on each of these six jails. The first to come up will be in Karnal. Subsequently, one will be built inside Gurgaon jail as well,” he said.The other four jails in the district where gaushalas will be set up, are likely to be Hisar, Sirsa, Yamunanagar and Bhiwani. “Around 5,000 stray cows are being slaughtered each month. We want to protect them. Maximum number of cases of cow smuggling are reported from areas such as Yamunanagar, Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat, Rewari and Narnaul, as they share their boundaries with Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan,” said 70-year-old Mangla.Talking about self-described gau rakshaks, who have allegedly been involved in criminal activities, Mangla said henceforth, gau rakshaks will be issued proper ID cards after they undergo police verification for easy identification. He emphasised that the gau rakshaks’ job is only to inform cops about any illegal activity, not to take law into their own hands. Animal rights activist Naresh Kadyan dismissed the proposal. He said, “It’s absurd to believe prisoners will reform after drinking cow milk. Instead of coming up with such illogical ideas, the government should do something substantial to protect the two lakh-odd stray cows roaming around in the state. Authorities should try to gain control of the 15,000 acres of common grazing land, which has been encroached upon. Prisoners will not be given milk free of cost. They will have to buy it.”