LAHORE, July 2: The final phase field operation of the fourth Livestock Census will begin from Monday (today) in 11 districts, two agencies and one federal region of the NWFP and six districts of Northern Areas.

The Agriculture Census Organisation (ACO) of finance ministry’s statistics division had started work on the fourth livestock census on Sept 1 last year. So far, four phases have been completed.

The two-month first phase enumeration in selected mauzas of 11 Punjab and talukas of 10 Sindh districts was completed on Nov 11 last year, ACO Commissioner Liaquat Ali Shah Hamdani told this reporter on Sunday.

The enumeration work of second phase in selected mauzas of 26 Punjab and talukas of 13 Sindh districts was completed on Jan 20 this year.

The third phase field operation was completed in 13 districts, six federal regions and three agencies of the NWFP, besides 18 districts of Balochistan on April 22.

The fourth phase in nine districts of Balochistan, eight districts of Azad Kashmir, one district, two agencies and one federal region was completed on June 20 while the fifth phase in the colder area of NWFP and Northern Areas would be completed by July 31, he said.

Haripur, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Battagaram, Kohistan (Dassu), Shanglapar (Alpuri), Bunner (Daggar), Swat (Mangora), Lower Dir (Timerhra), Upper Dir (Dir), Chitral districts, Malakand (Batkhela), Bajour (Khar) agencies and Mansehra federal region of the NWFP where the field operation or enumeration would be carried out, besides Chillas (Diamir), Astore, Gilgit, Ghizer (Gahkooch), Skardu, Ghanche (Khaplu) districts in Northern Areas.

“Primarily, the census covers the head count of commercially important livestock — cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats — by sex, breed and age groups besides the head count of horses, mules, donkeys and camels by sex and age groups. This time we have also included commercial poultry birds in the counting.

“Two separate surveys on milk production and the number of animals slaughtered will be conducted simultaneously with the census,” officials said.

The daily production capacity of milk on an average and its position of increasing demand would be assessed for making valuable planning for dairy development in the country, he said.

The data collected would be of utmost importance for planning and development of this very important sub-sector of agriculture sector and would be helpful for planners to formulate policies for the development of this sector, particularly for the uplift of rural economy, Mr Hamdani added.

It would also be helpful in ascertaining the damage caused to the sector by the Oct 8 earthquake in the NWFP, Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas regions. “Livestock is livelihood of a majority of residents of quake-hit areas, especially in Azad Kashmir.”

The fourth livestock census report would be ready by the end of April next year, some nine months ahead of schedule, Mr Hamdani said and added, “Pakistan is among the few states of the world which carry out livestock and agriculture machinery censuses separately while in more than 90 per cent countries the two are parts of the census.”

The staff of the livestock or animal husbandry and dairy development departments of the two provinces would be the enumerators.

“The district staff of the provincial livestock and dairy development departments is the executing agencies. All the staff deputed for the census has been trained by master trainers of the ACO,” he said.

The officers of the ACO attended district meetings with officials of provincial livestock departments from May 16 to 31 to make arrangements for field operation of the census.

This followed training of the functionaries of the provincial livestock and dairy development departments who would perform their duties as enumerators while the ACO staff would be supervisors of the census field operation.