India to hold national ‘cow science’ exam

January 8, 2021

India to hold national ‘cow science’ exam

India will hold a mass nationwide online “cow science” exam next month, in the latest push by the Hindu nationalist government to promote and protect the sacred animal, officials said yesterday.

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12:00 AM, January 07, 2021 / LAST MODIFIED: 02:04 AM, January 07, 2021
India to hold national ‘cow science’ exam

AFP, New Delhi

India will hold a mass nationwide online "cow science" exam next month, in the latest push by the Hindu nationalist government to promote and protect the sacred animal, officials said yesterday.

The hour-long test on February 25, open to children and adults as well as foreigners, comprises 100 multiple-choice questions in Hindi, English and 12 regional languages.
The aim is to assess the public's knowledge and "sensitise and educate" them, according to the RKA cow protection agency created by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration.

"Certificates will be given to all. Successful meritorious candidates will be given prizes and certificates," the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said.
"The cow is full of science and economics. People are not aware of the true economic and scientific value of the animal," RKA chief Vallabhbhai Kathiria said.

Accompanying study material released by the RKA includes information on different breeds of cow as well as the theory that slaughtering animals causes earthquakes.

Many from India's overwhelming Hindu majority consider cows sacred but under Modi's rule the animal has increasingly become a political and sectarian flashpoint. His government has made cows a top priority and invested millions of dollars in programmes to protect the animal and research the uses for bovine dung and urine.

Cow slaughter and eating beef has become illegal in many parts of the culturally diverse and officially secular country, while sentences elsewhere have increased.