By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 16 Dec: A meeting of the Governing Body of the Uttarakhand Livestock Development Board was held in the Secretariat here today under the chairmanship of Additional Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan. During the meeting, Bardhan reviewed the annual performance and progress of the board and urged officials to encourage both small and large farmers to participate in the livestock development programmes to develop a business-oriented approach among farmers and achieve the scheme’s objectives.
The Additional Chief Secretary stressed on adopting a holistic approach to bring about quantitative and qualitative genetic improvements in cow and buffalo breeds. He directed officials to take special steps to increase the pregnancy rate and maintain quality in artificial insemination centres. Additionally, he called for setting targets for the embryo transplant programme.
Bardhan stressed on setting breed-specific targets to increase animal productivity and suggested adopting a hybrid model to ensure farmers’ participation in government programmes aimed at protecting indigenous breeds. He highlighted the need for result-based programs to preserve indigenous breeds and encouraged more farmers to take advantage of the NLM Entrepreneurship Development Programme.
During the meeting, it was reported that there are currently 1,804 artificial insemination centres in the state. Conservation and promotion programmes for Badri cows are being conducted in six districts namely, Almora, Bageshwar, Chamoli, Pauri, Tehri, and Uttarkashi. Training programmes, including Maitri, AI Refresher, Pashu Sakhi, Goat Rearing, and A Help Programme are also being conducted.
Secretary Dr BVRC Purushottam and other committee members were present during the meeting.
