Punjab joins hands with two NGOs to ensure genetic upgrade of buffalos,ensure higher productivity

Cross-bred cows are a major success story in Punjab and have led to high-levels of milk yield. It has been due to aggressive promotion of artificial insemination of these animals with the semen obtained from genetically superior European breeding bulls. On the other hand,the yield of buffalos has been falling over the last few years due to successive inbreeding from the same gene pool.

Milkfed MD V K Singh told The Indian Express that while artificial insemination stands at almost 100 per cent for cows,it is only 20 to 30 per cent among buffaloes. “There is a major need for genetic improvement of buffalos,which will be the major focus of the work to be done by these NGOs,” he revealed. The NGOs will artificially inseminate the local indigenous low milk-yielding buffaloes with the semen of genetically superior breeding bulls. The resulting progeny will have an improved genetic make up and significantly higher milk-yielding capacity.

The Rs 45-crore project will be funded by the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) in collaboration with Punjab government,and will be implemented in the state over the next five years. Singh said that since farmers in the border villages are mainly dependent on agriculture and dairy farming,the project is being implemented in these areas. The NGOs will work in the border belt from Gurdaspur to Fazilka,and in the kandi belt including Dasuya,Mukerian,Hoshiarpur,Balachaur and adjoining areas.

The NGOs will set up 600 Integrated Buffalo Development Centres (IBDCs) covering about 3,000 villages in the region. Milkfed will pay Rs 1,400 per buffalo calf born to the NGO through the centres. The agreement is that in five years,the NGOs will have to ensure that a minimum of 800 buffalo calves are born through each centre. Simultaneously,the NGOs can carry out artificial insemination of cows too. For the cow calves,the amount of payment is less,so that the thrust of the project remains the genetic improvement of buffalos.

Singh said the NGOs will train the rural youth in managing each centre,which will cater to the villages in the area. JK Trust and BAIF have done significant work in the country through their Integrated Livestock Development Centres,offering artificial insemination facilities and other veterinary services like deworming,vaccination and regular health check ups of animals at the doorstep of