HYDERABAD: Sindh Livestock and Fisheries Minister Abdul Bari Pitafi said on Monday that through artificial insemination, Sindh’s breeds are to be preserved.

He said 80pc of breeds had been mixed in Pakistan, adding that the livestock department would be working on modern lines as well through a training plan for the insemination process.

He was speaking at a programme held in Sindh Agriculture University (SAU) Tandojam for distribution of transmission kits among students who completed the training.

The minister said that people usually did not have information about the mixed breeds in Pakistan. The artificial insemination project would benefit cattle pen owners to a greater etend, he said.

He said that Sindh has rare breeds of red Sindhi, Malir cow, Kundi buffalo and blue goat, which were not found in any part of the world. He said that in order to preserve these breeds and increase their numbers, the livestock department was working on artificial insemination.

He said he would try his best to improve performance of cattle pen owners and that he took pride in serving them through the ministry. He said the students who had completed their training would now be entering the field and everyone hoped that they would serve cattle owners in rural parts of the province and disseminate information about benefits of the artificial insemination.

He said the training would also help the students get jobs, adding that the department would ensure training in other sectors and students would be provided motorcycles along with opportunities to work in the field. He said the livestock department got some literature published containing information about the breeds of Sindh. The literature, he said, would enable farmers to approach the livestock department for whatever semen they wanted as these were available with the department.

He said that for the first time, artificial insemination had started in goats, which was a big achievement. He said semen of goat’s breeds, including Birhman, Rathi, Malir and Garhi were available with the livestock department.

The minister said cattle farmers would be persuaded to work for growth of those breeds through insemination. He said Pakistan’s 21pc GDP came from the agriculture and livestock sectors and of that, livestock contributed 60pc. He said it was indeed regrettable that only the industrial sector was given attention whereas the national economy was based on agriculture and livestock.

Speaking at the programme, Sindh Culture and Tourism Minister Syed Sardar Shah said that rearing livestock was the oldest profession of Sindh which was directly linked with Sindh’s culture. He said Sindh’s oldest civilisation of Moenjodaro also revealed information about red bull.

He said livestock played an important role in Sindh’s history as those breeds were of Rajasthan origin and historically Rajasthan had been part of Sindh. He said livestock would become an important source of revenue in future.

He said the livestock department would have to be modernised in Sindh while simultaneously preserving the breed for promoting Sindhi culture.

He said Sindh’s Garhi cow was producing around half-a-maund of milk in Brazil whereas it was having lower milk yields in Sindh. He said the establishment of a ‘breeding authority’ would prove beneficial for cattle farmers.

Sindh livestock department secretary Akbar Leghari said the department was in need of trainers which had been met through the project. He said present day needs demanded that Sindh increased its milk and meat production and preserved the breeds as well.

SAU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zaheeruddin Mirani said that the university’s role in the livestock project was important. He said the SAU would play its role in promoting livestock industry through Sindh government’s various projects in the sector.

Programme coordinator Dr Abdullah Sethar briefed the livestock minister about the insemination training programme.

He said farmers would be registered under the programme for preservation of rare breeds of cattle. He said 557 students had been imparted training in the project funded by the World Bank.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2020