India now has 212 indigenous livestock breeds after ICAR-NBAGR registers 10 new ones
- January 6, 2023
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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India now has 212 indigenous livestock breeds after ICAR-NBAGR registers 10 new ones
Subject: Environment
Context:
- In the last one year, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has registered 10 new breeds of livestock species, including cattle, buffalo, goat and pig. This has taken the total number of indigenous breeds to 212 as of January 4, 2023.
ICAR-National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR)
- Established on 21st September, 1984 at Bangalore in the form of twin institutes namely ICAR- National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources and National Institute of Animal Genetics and then shifted to Karnal in 1985.
- The two institutes were merged to function as a single entity in the form of ICAR- National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (ICAR-NBAGR) in 1995.
- This premier institute is dedicated to work with its mandate of identification, evaluation, characterization, conservation and utilization of livestock and poultry genetic resources of the country.
Registration of new breeds:
- The identification and registration of indigenous breeds started only after 2010.
- Those breeds which are not registered or identified are called ‘non-descript’.
- The registration was done by ICAR-National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR).
- The registration process involves identification and surveying of these breeds through visits to the native areas.
- Since 2010, this is the third highest increase in registration of indigenous breeds, after 15 new breeds in 2018-19 and 13 new breeds in 2019-20 were recorded.
- In 2010, there were only 129 indigenous breeds registered, called ‘extant breeds’.
- Registration helps in breed conservation and promotion activities, as state governments get funds especially for these breeds.
About the New breeds:
- The 10 new breeds included three new cattle breeds (Kathani, Sanchori, Masilum), one buffalo breed (Purnathadi), three goat breeds (Sojat, Karauli, Gujari) and three pig breeds (Banda, Manipuri Black, Wak Chambil).
- Purnathadi buffalo
- Found in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.
- The population of Kathani, a dual purpose cattle, is also distributed in the region.
- It possesses good draft ability and is suited to marshy land for paddy cultivation.
- Masilum
- It is a small-sized but well-built and sturdy cattle of Meghalaya.
- Well adapted to the hill ecosystem, it is reared by the Khasi and Jaintia communities for sports, manure and socio-cultural festivals.
- Sanchori is found in the Jalore district of Rajasthan.
- Among goats, all the three new breeds are from different regions of Rajasthan.
- Of the new pig breeds, Manipuri Black is a native of Manipur, Banda is from Jharkhand and Wak Chambil is from the Garo hills of Meghalaya.
Significance of indigenous breeds:
- Indigenous breeds are better suited to climate resilience.
- These are more heat tolerant, have better immunity and disease resistance.
- But there is a declining trend in some of the indigenous livestock, especially cattle.
- In the 20th Livestock Census, while the population of exotic / crossbred cattle increased by 29.3 per cent, compared to the 2012 Census, the population of indigenous cattle declined by six per cent.