The Centre is working on a plan to boost the capacity in the livestock sector to increase growth in agriculture. Shrinking area under cultivation and stagnation in crop productivity, is all likely to come in the way of the government for achieving a target of 4% growth for the agriculture sector.
The draft National Livestock Policy is soon likely to see the light of the day. The department of animal husbandry has convened a meeting of state ministers on July 22 to discuss the draft policy and suggest changes. ?The policy is ready. We need to seek the consensus of state governments. If the conference of ministers do not take place on July 22, we will fix another date very soon,? said secretary, animal husbandry department, Pradeep Kumar.
It is estimated that different areas of the livestock sector have the potential to grow between 6% to 8% annually. Livestock contributes more than 31% to agriculture. It contributes more than 5.3% to the GDP. Yet the sector suffers from serious neglect. Its share in the Central Plan outlay is only 0.28% and within the total outlay for agriculture its share is 9%. The allocation to livestock sector under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana is around 9%.
The 11th Plan has recognised the importance of the livestock sector and has promised an outlay of Rs 8,174 crore over a period of five years. But the annual releases of the outlay have still remained inadequate. In the previous year it was Rs 910 crore and in the current year Rs 1,000 crore was sanctioned by the Planning Commission against a demand for Rs 1,891 crore put by the department of animal husbandry.
Livestock is categorised as ?allied sectors of subsidiary occupation?. ?This tag should go,? said Kumar and added ?Livestock should be seen as a vibrant sector of the economy and for this reason we are coming out with a livestock policy.?
The foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cattle causes an annual loss of Rs 10,000 crore. Outbreak of Avian Flu has also caused huge losses to the poultry sector.
Measures for control of FMD are in operation in 54 districts. The proposed draft policy seeks to eradicate FMD on a war footing with six-monthly vaccination programme for 6 years and demarcate areas free from FMD.
To solve the problem, the proposed policy promises not only to provide quality veterinary services at the doorstep of the farmers but also upgrade infrastructure, skilled manpower and artificial insemination for quality breeding.
Though the onus of regulating the livestock sector vests with state governments under the Constitution, the Centre has a definite role to play. Marine and livestock have a major share in the country?s export basket. India has emerged as the largest producer of milk. Animal breeding depends upon geo-climatic conditions and the policy paper suggests breeding and genetic improvement for each species including the small ruminants like sheep, goats, pigs and rabbits. The genetic improvement will aim at both increasing lactation and meat in animals. In India milk produced by animals is less than 1,200 litre per lactation as against the world average of 2,300 litre per lactation. In Israel it is 12,000 litre per lactation. In Brazil, the Gir cow, which was once imported from India, now produces four time more milk than its mother race in India.
The policy paper calls for breeding of good quality of bulls and male buffalo and mandatory certification of quality semen. ?We will take care to protect and conserve indigenous breeds of animals as they can resist disease and adverse weather conditions more than the crossbred ones. Some indigenous breeds have high lactation,? Kumar said. The policy document also ensures availability of feed and fodder.
It also promises development of inland fisheries to raise fish production from 6.8 million tonne to 10 million tonne by the end of the 11th Plan period. It noted that territorial waters are over exploited and there are no adequate high-tech vessels for deep sea fishing. Hence, inland water bodies need to be leased out for fish arming. High-tech vessels are needed for tuna fish catchers around Amdamans. It suggested multiplication centres for Black Tiger Prawns and Vannami Shrimps. The draft policy suggested marketing, storage, processing, value addition and quality assurance for all livestock products.