NDDB holds webinar to address dairy farmers' problems amid COVID-19 crisis

The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) on Friday launched an interactive webinar to create awareness about procedures to be followed in the dairy value chain during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dairy farmers and other stakeholders from Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and Assam participated in the webinar. More than 500 queries were raised and were responded immediately by NDDB experts, an official statement said.

"During this pandemic, milch animals must be taken care of, as any compromise on their feeding and healthcare would impact reproductive efficiency and productivity," NDDB Chairman Dilip Rath said.

Experts at NDDB are working to ensure that COVID-19 does not become a barrier in sharing information on new innovations and technologies with dairy farmers, he said.

Dairy farmers need to connect with the board's experts through the digital platform and follow guidelines to overcome the difficult situation, he added.

The 45-minute webinar had peak live viewership of 1,664 and total views have crossed 18,000 in 24 hours with total watch time of 925 hours, the board said.

NDDB's experts from the departments of animal health, animal nutrition, animal breeding and cooperatives services addressed the immediate concerns of dairy farmers and discussed ways to handle the prevalent challenges.

The webinar highlighted ayurveda-based Ethno Veterinary Medicine (EVM) for cost effective management of some major ailments of milch animals (like FMD, Mastitis, heat stress), importance of vaccination and ear tagging, feed management, and balanced feeding to increase milk production.

That apart, the webinar also discussed about importance of artificial insemination and breeding management, difficulties faced by cooperatives and ensuring regular payments to farmers.

This digital platform will continue maintaining connect with the stakeholders, disseminate information, and get diverse set of experts on the platform to delve on developments in the sector including innovative practices and success stories, the NDDB added.