Hill cow or Badri cow, also known as pahadi cow in Uttarakhand has got a certification from National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR) in Karnal as state’s first cattle breed.
The cow is only found in the hilly region of the state and has been suitable for the high-altitude topography.
According to NBAGR, the registration of nine new breeds of livestock and poultry was approved in June. After inclusion of these newly registered breeds, the total number of indigenous breeds in the country now stands at 160, which include 40 breed of cattle.
This cow is a typical of the Indian cow as it is docile and is considered that its milk is easy to digest in addition to various medicinal values. The urine and dung of this cattle have also been used for treatment of various disorders of human beings. In hill areas, this cow is kept as a grazing animal and is seldom stall fed, this further adds to the medicinal values to its products.
These cows are of small size with an average weight of 200-250 kg. The neck is wide and small and these cows are having very bright and alert eyes. The ears are always erected and show the alertness of the animal. The udder is less developed with an average of 1.0 kg milk production per cow per day.
Speaking on this, scientists at the GB Pant Agricultural University said that as these cow grazes only on herbs and shrubs which have rich medicinal content, its milk has high organic value.
Not only this, these cows can graze on steep landscape alongside mountain sheep and goats.
After this, the state will now put focus on preserving the breed, as now they can now source funds from the central government for the breeding programme.
According to NBAGR, the registration of nine new breeds of livestock and poultry was approved in June. After inclusion of these newly registered breeds, the total number of indigenous breeds in the country now stands at 160, which include 40 breed of cattle.
NBAGR is a premier institute that is dedicated to work with its mandate of identification, evaluation, characterization, conservation and utilization of livestock and poultry genetic resources of the country.