Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel, Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Panchayati Raj, chaired a Virtual Awareness Program on July 23, 2025, aimed at livestock farmers across Northern, North-Eastern states and Bihar. The program was conducted via Common Service Centres (CSCs), enabling wide participation. Smt. Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD),  Ms. Varsha Joshi, Additional Secretary, DAHD, along with other officers of the department  also attended the session. The program saw enthusiastic participation from over 2 lakh livestock farmers, connected through 4,000 CSC locations across 16 States and Union Territories, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, and Ladakh.

In his address Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel,  reaffirmed the government’s focus on boosting rural livelihoods through livestock entrepreneurship. Addressing farmers, he urged them to take full advantage of government schemes and adopt modern technologies such as artificial insemination, genomic selection, biosecurity measures, and the AHD Kisan Credit Card (KCC). Highlighting that India contributes 25% of the world’s milk production, he emphasized the sector's potential for sustainable rural income. Prof. Baghel also noted the government's push to transition livestock cooperatives into the organized sector for greater efficiency. The Minister of State  stressed  upon the significance of breed improvement and robust vaccination efforts, especially against Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), with over 100 crore doses administered under the FMD-Mukt Bharat initiative so far. During his interaction, he encouraged farmers to apply their knowledge from government programs to ensure holistic growth of the animal husbandry sector as well as the rural economy.

Smt. Alka Upadhyaya, highlighted the department’s commitment to delivering services directly to farmers, with a special focus on last-mile connectivity and outreach in the North-East. She pointed to the untapped potential in the hilly regions for livestock and dairy development, urging local communities to leverage their natural advantages. During the interaction, Ms. Varsha Joshi underscored the need to adopt advanced breeding technologies like Sex-Sorted Semen and IVF, encouraging them to embrace science-led productivity improvements.

The awareness program featured expert-led sessions and informative videos on enhancing livestock productivity through modern technologies and support schemes. It served as a platform for knowledge sharing, policy awareness, and promoting entrepreneurship, highlighting the vital role of livestock farmers in rural development. This initiative is part of DAHD’s ongoing efforts to boost awareness in the livestock and dairy sector by leveraging digital platforms and directly engaging with farmers across the country.

****

Aditi Agrawal

(Release ID: 2147526)