Indian Agriculture - Animal Husbandry

Animal Husbandry:

Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development plays a prominent role in the rural economy in supplementing the income of rural households, particularly, the landless and small and marginal farmers. It also provides subsidiary occupation in semi-urban areas and more so for people living in hilly, tribal and drought prone areas where crop output may not sustain the family. Animal husbandry output constitutes about 30 per cent of the country's agricultural output.

India is endowed with the largest livestock population in the world. It accounts for 57 per cent of the world’s buffalo population and 15 per cent of the cattle population. According to Livestock Census (2003), the country has about 18.5 crore cattle and 9.8 crore buffaloes.

Contribution of Livestock Sector to Food Basket:

The contribution of livestock sector to the food basket in the form of milk, eggs and meat has been immense in fulfilling the animal protein requirement of ever-growing human population. The present availability of human protein in an Indian diet is 10 gm per person per day, as against a world average of 25 gm. However, keeping in view the growing population, the animal protein availability has to increase at least two-fold for maintaining the nutritional level of growing children and nursing mothers in India.

Milk Production: During past five year plans, several measures have been initiated by the Government to increase the productivity of livestock, which has resulted in significant increase in the milk production to the level of 90.7 million tonnes at the end of 2004-05. India has become the largest producer of milk in the world. The per capita availability of milk is estimated to be 231 gm per day during 2004-05.

Egg Production: Poultry development in the country has shown steady progress over the years. Egg production during 2004-05 was 45.2 billion. Currently, India ranks fifth in egg production in the world.

Wool Production: The wool production in the country was 44.5 million kg in 2004-05.

Other Livestock Products: Livestock sector not only provides essential protein and nutritious human diet through milk, eggs, meat, etc., but also plays an important role in utilisation of non-edible agricultural by-products. Livestock also provides raw material/by products such as hides and skins, blood, bone, fat, etc.

Animal Husbandry - Cattle and Buffalo Development:

India possesses 27 acknowledged indigenous breeds of cattle and seven breeds of buffaloes. Various Central and Centrally sponsored schemes are being implemented for genetic improvement of cattle and buffalo with a view to enhance the per capita availability of consumption of milk through increased milk production. Efforts are also made to protect and preserve the indigenous cattle and buffalo in their native tract, which are facing threat of extinction. The elite animals are selected and registered on the basis of their performance for production of superior pedigree bulls, bull-mothers, frosen semen and frozen embryos for future breeding improvements.

Poultry Development:

The value of output from poultry sector is nearly 20000 crore and it provides direct or indirect employment to over 2 million people. About 25 percent of total egg production in the country comes from the desi poultry, which is unorganised rural backyard system. A target for achieving production of over 52 billion eggs by 2011-12, at a growth rate of 4.3 percent has been visualised by the Government of India.

Poultry sector, besides employment generation and subsidiary income increase, provides nutritional security especially to the rural poor.

Central Poultry Development Organisations have been playing a pivotal role in the implementation of the policies of the Government with respect to poultry as a tool for alleviating nutritional hunger and palliating the impecuniosities of the resource-poor farmers especially the women.

Animal Husbandry - Sheep Development:

According to Livestock Census 2003, there are about 61.47 million sheep and 124.36 million goats in the country. About five million households in the country are engaged in the rearing of small ruminants (sheep, goats and rabbits) and other allied activities. The production of wool was 44.5 million kg during 2004-05. The estimated wool production was about 50.0 million kg during 2005-06. Central Sheep Breeding Farm, Hissar is producing acclimatised exotic/cross bred superior quality rams. The farm has supplied 1370 rams and 50 Rambouillet ewes during 2004-05 to different states. During 2005-06, the farm has supplied 854 rams and 30 ewes. The target for net production and salis of rams has been kept at 900.

Animal Husbandry - Conservation of Threatened Breeds:

Population of some of the purebred small ruminants, equines, pigs and pack animals has come down considerably and such breeds have come to the category of threatened breeds in the country. The farms or the farmers unit in their respective breeding tract are to be established with Cent per cent Central assistance for breeds of these animals wherein their population is less than 10,000 with active participation of State Governments and NGOs, etc. A new Centrally Sponsored Scheme for conservation of such threatened breeds has been started during Tenth Five Year Plan with a budget outlay of Rs 1500 lakh.}

Animal Husbandry - Piggery Development:

There are more than 135.2 lakh pigs in the country of which approximately 12.5 per cent are graded and exotic variety. There are about 112 pig breeding farms in the country run by the State Governments / Union Territories. Exotic breeds like Large White Yorkshire, Hampshire,Duroc and Landrace and their crosses are maintained at some of these farms.

Animal Husbandry - Feed and Fodder Development:

For improvement of vast livestock resources through proper scientific methods, availability of nutritious feed and fodder is essential. To make available scientific fodder production technology, eight regional fodder/Seed Production farms stations have been established in different agro-climatic zones. These are also engaged in production and propagation of certified quality fodder seeds. During 2005-06, these stations produced 276.00 MT of fodder seeds and conducted 4402 field demonstrations of new fodder varieties.

Animal Husbandry - Dairy Development:

The Indian Dairy Industry has acquired substantial growth from the Eighth Plan onwards, achieving an annual output of over 90.7 million tonnes of milk during 2004-05. India’s milk output has not only placed the industry first in the world, but also represents sustained growth in the availability of milk and milk products. The Government implemented four schemes in the dairy sector during 2005-06.

Animal Husbandry - Fisheries:

The Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has been undertaking various production, input supply and infrastructure development programmes and welfare–oriented schemes besides formulating/initiating appropriate policies to increase production and productivity in the Fisheries Sector.

The fisheries sector has been one of the major contributors of foreign exchange earnings through export. Export of fish and fishery products has grown manifold over the years. From about 15,700 tonnes valued at Rs 3.92 crore in 1961-62, exports have grown to 4.37 lakh tonnes valued at Rs 6188.95 crore in 2004-05.