Every drink, toll payment, or bag of cement is funding cow welfare in parts of India, raising serious questions about the transparency and efficacy of dedicated public levies.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The phenomenon of the “cow cess”—an indirect tax explicitly dedicated to cow protection and welfare—has rapidly expanded across multiple Indian states. As Investment Banker Sarthak Ahuja recently detailed, these levies are embedded in a wide array of everyday transactions:
- You pay a cow tax when you purchase liquor in Jaipur and Gurgaon, buy a vehicle in Punjab, or purchase cement and sand for construction in Uttar Pradesh.
- Other states like Haryana apply it to tolls and electricity bills, while Madhya Pradesh includes it on property and vehicle sales.
The Numbers: Millions Collected, Billions Spent
The revenue from these cesses is substantial and adds up to billions spent annually:
| State | Annual Revenue (Approx.) |
| Rajasthan | ₹2,000 crore |
| Haryana | ₹500 crore |
| Uttar Pradesh | ₹200 crore |
| Total Annual Spend | ≈ ₹3,000 crore |
The most prominent example is Rajasthan, which introduced a 20% cow cess on VAT for liquor in 2018 (equating to roughly 5% of the total retail price), and is now considering a hike to 25%.
The Core Issue: Efficacy vs. Outcome
While the concept of earmarked welfare funding is not new, the sheer scope and scale of this tax—and the lack of visible impact—have triggered renewed scrutiny. The ₹3,000 crore collective expenditure is earmarked for cow shelters and related welfare infrastructure.
Ahuja correctly highlights the critical accountability gap: “There should ideally be no stray cattle on the roads.”
This mismatch between significant tax collection and visible outcomes compels us to ask: How is this public money being used, and how is its efficacy measured? Dedicated levies demand dedicated transparency.
What are your thoughts on dedicated welfare cesses? Should the burden of funding be this widespread, or should there be stricter checks on how the funds are deployed?
