SUPPORT TO BUFFALO BREED DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

Jaipur/  As part of an important initiative to improve the breeds of buffaloes in Bharatpur district, 65 bulls of Murrah variety have been brought from neighbouring Haryana and handed over to cattle-breeders in the villages with the subsidy provided by the Rajasthan Livestock Development Board for improving the capacity of buffaloes to give milk and augmenting the income of the rural population.

Over a period of time, the domestic buffaloes in the district will be replaced with the Murrah buffaloes through natural breeding by the Murrah bulls. Following the similar efforts undertaken in Haryana, Bharatpur district is set to become the first Murrah district in Rajasthan.

The Rajasthan Livestock Development Board had recently sanction a subsidy of Rs. 14.80 lakhs for purchasing 74 Murrah bulls, with the provision for Rs. 20,000 as subsidy for each bull and the payment of the remainder by the beneficiaries. Under the scheme, cattle-breeders mostly living in Kumher and Sewar Panchayat Samitis have got the bulls, whose market value ranged from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000 each.

The Lupin Human Welfare and Research Foundation has helped out the farmers in purchasing bulls from Haryana. A committee headed the Dr. L.C. Agrawal, Deputy Director, Animal Husbandry Department, was appointed for purchasing the bulls. Members of the committee and cattle-rearers went to Rohtak district in Haryana, where they purchased the bulls of their choice and those registered by the Deputy Director, Central Herd Registration Scheme.

Lupin HW&R Foundation’s Programme In-Charge, Mr. J.P. Singh, said here today that the arrangements for travel and stay of cattle-breeders were made by the Foundation. The bulls of Murrah breed will produce about 13,000 calves every year and set in motion the process for replacement of Desi breed of buffaloes with the Murrah buffaloes.

A Murrah buffalo gives an average of 12 to 15 litres milk everyday, which is more than two times higher than the Desi buffalo’s output. The owners of Murrah bulls will also get an additional income of Rs. 4,000 to Rs. 5,000 every month by sending their bulls for natural breeding of buffaloes in their villages.

Mr. Singh pointed out that a close observation of the animal husbandry activities in Rohtak district had revealed that the cattle-breeders there pay more attention to maintenance and feeding of the livestock. Murrah buffaloes in Haryana give 2,000 to 3,000 litres of milk without any difficulty in a season.

The male calves in Rohtak are not sold for meat but are raised up to the age of about two years, after which they are sold for Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000 each. The same terms apply to the buffaloes of Murrah variety. Since they are in heavy demand all over the country due to their high capacity to give milk, they can easily fetch Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 1 lakh each in the market. A cattle-breeder can augment his income not only by selling milk, but also by selling a couple of buffaloes.

Mr. Singh pointed out that the initiative had been widely appreciated by the rural folk in Bharatpur district. Against the subsidy provided for 74 bulls, 65 have been purchased so far and the cattle-breeders hope that Bharatpur would soon emerge as the first Murrah district of Rajasthan on the pattern of Haryana.

 Kalyan Singh Kothari