Centre approves installation of quarantine facility for Australian Merino in J&K

In a major boost to improve the quality of sheep in J&K, Government of India for the first time has approved quarantine facility of imported Australian Merino sheep in J&K instead of earlier practice of quarantine at a Delhi facility.

A team from Government of India will soon visit the SheepBreeding Farm Daksum for inspection of the facility, Principal Secretary AnimalHusbandry Department Asghar Hassan Samoon said this during a review meeting ofthe Sheep Husbandry Department here on Thursday, according to an officialspokesperson.

   

Under the National Livestock Mission, the central governmentapproved funds to three states– Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu &Kashmir — for transporting Merino breed from Australia.

J&K has got major share of the central government schemeworth Rs 13.28 crore in the ratio of 90: 10 (Centre: state).

Samoon said that the Merino sheep would be first quarantinedin Australia and kept under observation for a month.

“They will be brought to Daksum Sheep Breeding Farm andfor two generations, the sheep would be reared there. From third generation,they will be given to farmers with a clause that the pure blood breeding shouldnot exceed 75 percent of the population,” he told officials.

Samoon said that the aim of importing Marino sheep toJ&K is to improve the production so that the farmers will get benefitedbesides improving growth rate/carcass weight and stopping inbreedingdepression.

He also said that the import of Marino rams will alsoimprove fineness of wool besides enhanced wool production.

He also took stock of status of various sheep/goat farms acrossthe state and asked the officers to improve the facilities there besidesenhancing fodder production.

Samoon asked the officers to explore possibilities ofsetting up more sheep farms and timely completion of projects projected underNABARD, state and central government funding.

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