ICAR approves registration of record 15 new breeds of livestock & poultry this year

New Delhi: The Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) has approved registration of record 15 new breeds of livestock and poultry this year alone taking the total to 40 during 2014-18.

The 15 newly registered breeds include two cattle breeds – Ladakhi (J&K) and Konkan Kapila (Maharashtra & Goa); three buffalo breeds – Luit (Assam & Manipur), Bargur (Tamil Nadu), Chhattisgarhi (Chhattisgarh); one sheep breed – Panchali (Gujarat); six goat breeds – Kahmi (Gujarat), Rohilkhandi (UP), Assam Hill (Assam & Meghalaya), Bidri (Karnataka), Nandidurga (Karnataka), Bhakarwali (J&K); one pig breed – Ghurrah (UP); one donkey breed – Halari (Gujarat) and one chicken breed – Uttara (Uttarakhand).

Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Mr Radha Mohan Singh at a ceremony for awarding breed registration certificates to the stakeholders said that these native breeds are renowned for heat tolerance, disease resistance and thriving on low input system. “The process of identification of animal breeds and their documentation is not only important in providing value to the ingenious animal breeds and introducing various development programs of the government for their improvement but also plays a special role in preserving the biodiversity of the country. We have about 15 percent of total cattle, 57 percent of total buffalo, 17 percent of goat, 7 percent of sheep and 4.5 percent of chicken of the world. There is still the possibility of many populations in pure form in the remote areas which need to be assessed for registration as breeds in the coming years.”

Minister said that other than recognition of new breeds; the improvement, protection and conservation of existing breeds are equally important. “Keeping this in mind, a number of measures have been taken to protect native breeds. In Rashtriya Gokul Mission, more than Rs 2000 crore has been allocated for the improvement and conservation of our indigenous breeds,” added Mr Singh.