Uttar Pradesh bans sale of meat within 500 metres of religious sites during Navratri

The Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday banned the sale of meat within a 500-metre radius of religious sites during the Hindu festival of Navratri, reported The Indian Express. The Adityanath-led government also ordered all meat shops to remain closed on April 6, the day of Ram Navami.

The nine-day-long festival of Navratri began on Sunday and will conclude on April 6.

The state government warned that those violating the order will be punished under the Uttar Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 1959, and the Food Safety Acts of 2006 and 2011, according to The Times of India.

District-level committees have been formed under the leadership of district magistrates to ensure implementation of the order, reported The Indian Express. These committees include officials from the police, Pollution Control Board, animal husbandry department, transport department, labour department, health department and food safety administration.

Adityanath also directed the Urban Development and Rural Development Departments to ensure a “clean environment around temples” during Navratri. The chief minister ordered additional sanitation workers to be deployed for this.

Additionally, he directed officials that a 24-hour recitation of the Ramcharitmanas, the religious book on the Hindu deity Ram, should be organised in all districts of the state on Ram Navami, according to The Indian Express.

Even before the state government’s directives, the Varanasi Municipal Corporation had ordered the closure of all meat,...

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