Raipur: The Chhattisgarh government on Friday paid Rs 8.97 crore for buying cow dung from 77,000 residents of the state.
Since the Congress-led government inaugurated the Godhan Nyay Yojana scheme in July this year, the state government has paid out a whopping Rs 47.38 crore in all to cow dung sellers across the state, reported The Indian Express.
Under the scheme, several Gothans (cowsheds) are being constructed across the state, where cow dung is converted into vermicompost. The organic manure is then sold to the farmer, encouraging organic fertilizer and discouraging chemical one.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said the under-construction gothans need to be finished at the earliest so that they can be used as “aajivika kendra” for women. “The implementation of people-led schemes, like Suraji village, Godhan and the Rajiv Gandhi Nyay schemes, have helped set Chhattisgarh apart from the rest of the country,” he said.
According to state officials, Chhattisgarh currently has 5,454 gothans, of which 3,677 are operational.
Till date, the state government has procured 23,68,900 quintals of cow dung. Over 44,000 tanks have been made to convert the cow dung into vermicompost, while 16,000 are under construction.
More than 8,000 quintals of vermicompost have been produced so far, of which 1,000 quintals have been sold.
