Conference of State Ministers of Animal Husbandry to be held today

New Delhi, Sept 13 : A Conference of State Ministers of Animal Husbandry and Dairying will be convened here today to devise a strategy for accelerated growth in the livestock sector.

The conference will be inaugurated by Agriculture Minister, Sharad Pawar, and will be attended by the State Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development Ministers, concerned officers and veterinary and animal sciences experts.

Though the contribution of livestock sector to agriculture GDP has gone up in the recent years, this sector is presently facing serious constraints due to huge unproductive population, diseases and shortage of feed and fodder. It is in this context that a National Livestock Policy and a National Dairy Plan have been drawn up.

The Policy contemplates to double the availability of protein from 10 gm per capita per day at present to 20 gm within a decade.

The Dairy Plan would focus on improvement of cattle breeds, marketing and other issues. These items will be discussed with the State Governments during the Conference.

The Conference would also discuss issues such as feed and availability of fodder, control of livestock diseases (such as the foot and mouth disease and bird flu), preparation for natural calamities and threat emerging from global warming.

ANI