In India, an authority appointed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the protection of the cows that are worshiped there as sacred has invited to a scientific examination. Shortly after their announcement, however, appropriate learning material on cow science caused controversy – the authority therefore temporarily removed it from its website, as a spokesman for the dpa said in New Delhi.
According to local media, the learning material says that killing cows causes earthquakes and that milk from Indian cows contains traces of gold. People who live in houses with walls covered with cow dung were also spared a serious gas leak in 1984.
Money if the exam is passed
Foreigners could also take part in the one-hour online exam on February 25, according to the website. For successful test participants there is an attractive amount of money, said a spokesman for the authorities. In a communication from the Ministry of Animal Husbandry and Dairy Farming, it says about the learning material: „This will make all Indians curious about cows and inform them about untapped potential and business opportunities (…).“
In India, cows are sacred to the majority of the Hindu population, but according to traditional Indian Ayurvedic medicine, cow’s milk, cow urine and cow dung are considered healing. However, many farmers abandon old female cows when they no longer give milk and are no longer financially viable. Many animals then die in traffic. The incumbent Hindu nationalist government has increasingly politicized cows, invested a lot of money for their protection and for cow science and in some cases banned the killing of these animals.
