Besides introducing levy of cow cess on vehicles, the Punjab Government will also introduce this cess on consumption of power and on purchase of several other items.
This new order has found favor with 154 municipal councils while 33 have already passed the resolution. 7 municipal corporations out of 10 have endorsed the decision for which a formal notification will be issued on 25th May 2016.
The Government has proposed cow cess at the rate of INR 1,000 on purchase of a new vehicle (rickshaw, car, truck, bus, etc) while purchase of a two wheeler will attract a cow cess of INR 500. We are not sure of the reason, but purchasing an oil tanker will attract a cow cess of INR 500.
Besides cess on vehicles, the local government has also proposed cow cess of INR 1,000 on booking of an AC marriage hall, INR 500 for booking of a non AC hall and Rs.10 per bottle of Indian Made Foreign Liquor and Rs.5 per bottle of Punjab Medium Liquor.
Though this proposal was raised in 2014, its passing was pending at various municipal councils and corporations. This cow cess is estimated to bring in around INR 90-100 crores per annum which will be spent on cow feeding, upkeep and welfare.
The Punjab Gau Sewa Commission has confirmed a total of 2.69 lakh cows in the state which are being taken care of at the 472 shelter. Besides this, there are around 1.06 lakh stray cows which have caused a host of road accidents over the past two years in which 280 persons have died.
