Animal husbandry is the scientific management of animal livestock.It consists of numerous components including shelter, feeding, breeding and sickness control.  It consists of livestock, goat, sheep, hen, and fish farming.

Animal husbandry in India

• Livestock sector contributes 4% of GDP and 25% of total Agriculture GDP.
• According to livestock census 2019, livestock in India witnessed an increase of 4.6% as compared to the previous census.
• Livestock productivity has been identified as one of the seven sources of income growth by the Inter-Ministerial Committee under the government’s target of doubling farmers’ income by the year 2022.

Importance of livestock farming in India

• Income: Unlike crop production, livestock are a secured source of income. Moreover, animals like sheep and goats are used to meet exigencies like marriage, treatment of sick persons, in the times of distress.
• Employment: Livestock provides employment to a large section of rural people who remain unemployed due to seasonal nature of crop production. Also, livestock reduces the risk of disguised unemployment in agriculture.
• Food: Livestock also provides with the basic nutritious foods like milk, egg, meat, etc thus ensuring healthy diet even in times of economic distress.

Cattle farming

• It is carried out for 2 purposes – milk and draught labour for agricultural paintings including tiling, irrigation and carting
• Indian livestock belong to 2 specific species: Bos indicus (cows) and Bos bubalis (buffaloes)
• Milk-generating ladies are known as milch animals (dairy animals), at the same time as those used for farm labour are known as draught animals
• Milk manufacturing relies upon, to a few extend, at the period of the lactation period
• Exotic or overseas breeds (Jersey, Brown Swiss) are decided on for lengthy lactation intervals
• Local breeds (Red Sindhi, Sahiwal) display splendid resistance to illnesses
• They may be bred to get animals with each the preferred qualities
• Animal feed consists of: (a) roughage, which is basically fibre, and (b) concentrates, that are low in fibre and incorporate notably excessive ranges of proteins and different nutrients
• Cattle are afflicted by numerous illnesses. The sicknesses, except inflicting death, lessen milk manufacturing
• Infectious illnesses also are resulting from microorganisms and viruses. Vaccinations are given to livestock in opposition to many principal viral and bacterial illnesses.

Poultry farming

• It is undertaken to elevate home birds for egg manufacturing and hen meat
• The crossbreeding programmes among Indian (indigenous Aseel) and overseas (exceptional Leghorn) breeds for range development are targeted directly to increase new sorts having acceptable traits.

Potential of the poultry sector

• The development goes beyond size – extending to efficiency, superiority and quality.
• Labour: Poultry sector, besides providing direct or indirect employment to nearly 3 million people is a potent tool for subsidiary income generation for many landless and marginal farmers.
• Nutritional security: For a distressed farmer’s family, food provided by livestock is the only source of nutrition required for survival and also provides nutritional security.
• Reliable source of income: Further, landless labourers derive more than 50 per cent of their income from livestock especially from poultry.
• Asset: Livestock are important asset for a distress farmer which can be encashed at any moment and may help him to come out of debt trap.

Growth Drivers in the Poultry Industry

• Integrated production, market transition from live birds to chilled and frozen products, and policies that ensure supplies of competitively priced corn and soybean are critical to future poultry industry growth in India.
• Concurrently, India’s unorganised and backyard poultry sector is a powerful tool for secondary income generation for many landless/marginal farmers, as well as providing nutritional security to the rural poor.
• Despite the ingress of avian influenza, which was a severe setback for the industry, these achievements and growth rates are still being maintained, demonstrating the subsector’s resilience, the private sector’s perseverance, and timely intervention by the government.

Poultry Sector – Challenges

• Outbreaks of diseases such as Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) result in the culling of poultry, cancellation of orders, and price increases, all of which have a significant impact on the industry.
• Another issue is a lack of raw materials. The price of soybean meal has risen, forcing feed manufacturers to make dietary changes for birds.
• Another issue is a lack of human resources due to the lack of veterinarians and researchers in areas where expertise knowledge is required.
• The Indian poultry sector is still unable to reap the benefits of the international market. The major factor affecting the poultry sector in India is a lack of adequate cold storage and warehouses.
• Lack of comprehensive regulating authority to maintain hygiene and the granting of business licences.
• The proximity of the birds to their waste and other birds increases the risk of agents such as salmonella for consumers.

Initiatives for Poultry

Poultry Venture Capital Fund (PVCF)

• The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying implements it under the National Livestock Mission’s “Entrepreneurship Development and Employment Generation” (EDEG).
• It is a bankable program with Central Government subsidies provided through NABARD for PVCF loans.

National Livestock Mission

• Various programmes within the National Livestock Mission that provide financial assistance to states/union territories for the implementation of Rural Backyard Poultry Development (RBPD) and Innovative Poultry Productivity Projects (IPPP).

Assistance to States in the Control of Animal Diseases (ASCAD) Scheme

• ASCAD includes vaccination for economically important poultry diseases and control of emergent and exotic diseases like Avian Influenza.

Fish production

• Fish is a reasonably-priced supply of animal protein for our meals
• Fish manufacturing consists of the finned proper fish in addition to shellfish including prawns and molluscs
• Fish can be acquire from marine assets in addition to inland assets

Marine fisheries

• India’s marine fishery assets encompass 7500 km of shoreline and the deep seas past it
• Popular marine fish sorts encompass pomfret, mackerel, tuna, sardines, and Bombay duck
• Yields are improving by means of finding massive colleges of fish within the open sea, the usage of satellites and echo-sounders
• To meet the increasing demand for fish, mariculture and traditional sea fisheries are essential with depleting marine stocks..

Inland fisheries

• Fresh water assets encompass canals, ponds, reservoirs and rivers
• Estuaries, lagoons, and other brackish water bodies are vital fish reservoirs with mixed seawater and freshwater.
• The yield isn’t always excessive in those reservoirs. Most fish manufacturing from those assets is through aquaculture
• Challenge: Many of the fish breed simplest in the course of monsoon
• A principal hassle in fish farming is the shortage of availability of accurate fine seed. To triumph over this hassle, hormonal stimulation approach is use to reproduce those fish in ponds.

Importance of Fisheries Sector

• Inland fisheries employ 30-60 million people in the developing world, with women comprising half the workforce.
• Approximately 65% of fish caught in inland fisheries come from low-income food deficit countries.
• Fish accounts for more than 25% of global dietary protein.
• In 2017-18, fish accounted for roughly 10% of total Indian exports and nearly 20% of agricultural exports.
• Fisheries and aquaculture production contribute about 1% of India’s GDP and more than 5% of agricultural GDP.

India’s Fisheries Sector

Important Stats

• India is the world’s third-largest fish producer, contributing 7.7% of global production and ranking second in aquaculture.
• India houses over 10% of global fish biodiversity and is among the 17 mega-biodiversity rich countries..
• Fisheries and aquaculture production increased significantly from 5 lakh tons in 1950-51 to 142 lakh tons in FY 2019-20.
• The sector supports 16 million fishers and fish farmers, generating income, employment, and foreign exchange for the nation..

Beekeeping

• Beekeeping is executed to get honey and wax

• Honey is broadly uses and beekeeping for making honey has emerged as an agricultural enterprises
• The beehives are a supply of wax that is utilizes in numerous medicinal preparations

• Local sorts: Apis cerana indica, normally referred to as the Indian bee, A. dorsata, the rock bee and A. florae, the little bee
• Foreign Variety: An Italian bee range, A. mellifera, has been delivered into the growth yield of honey
• They live in a given beehive for lengthy intervals and breed very well

• For business honey manufacturing, bee farms or apiaries are establishes.
• The cost or fine of honey relies upon the pasturage, or the plant life to be hard to the bees for nectar and pollen series
• The flavor of honey depends on the plant life as well as the amount of pasturage.

Government initiatives for livestock farming in India

• Development Programmes: Rashtriya Gokul Mission, National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), National Livestock Mission (NLM) and Livestock Census and Integrated Sample Survey (LC & ISS) as sub-schemes.
• Disease Control programme renamed Livestock Health and Disease Control (LH & DC) program incorporates schemes like NADCP for disease control.
• Infrastructure Development Fund: Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development fund (AHIDF) and the Dairy Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF)

Recommendations for livestock farming in India

• Sufficient resources: Increasing livestock productivity in India’s rain-shadow region requires adequate fodder and drinking water supply.
• Marketing: Effective trade policies and reduced middlemen influence are essential for promoting livestock products and ensuring fair prices for farmers.
• Promoting indigenous breeds: Indigenous cattle breeds are vital for their adaptability and superior quality, necessitating their promotion.
• Training: Necessary training and subsidies shall be provided to farmers to adopt livestock rearing as an alternate source of income.
• Research and development: Government should prioritize R&D in the livestock sector to enhance productivity and benefit small farmers.

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