 "Bullish about female calves")
A group of scientists from the government-run National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) at Karnal, Haryana, are working on a technology, different from the existing foreign-patented one, to facilitate the birth of female-only calves.
The idea is to multiply milk production and also address the economic and social problems associated with the killing of unproductive bulls.
Still nascent, this 'sex-semen technology' involves cleaning all 'Y' chromosomes from a male sperm and then injecting it into a female. The resulting offspring can only be a female, as a male is produced when 'X' and 'Y' chromosomes combine.
The research has been on for several years. It got a push after the change of government in 2014 at the Centre. A team of 25-30 scientists are working on the project, assisted by research scholars (students). The existing sex-semen technology, is patented with a US-based company. The existing sex-semen technology, also termed 'flow cytometry', is patented with a US-based company. What the scientists here are planning is to wean away all 'Y' chromosomes from a male sperm through an indigenous technology, different from the process currently used.
"The process is very complex as there is no previous precedent and separating of 'X' and 'Y' chromosomes from a male sperm is itself very difficult. Still, we are trying," a senior scientist on the project told Business Standard. He said they were keeping their fingers crossed.
Apart from being cumbersome and difficult, he said the research was very costly. A single dose of cattle semen from the US costs a little over Rs 2,000.
The scientists had asked for Rs 55 crore from the Centre, of which only Rs 6-7 crore was released, being used mainly to put up the infrastructure for the project.
"We need more funds and are hopeful that it will be done soon, as this is one of the priority projects of the Government of India," the scientist said.
Bringing down the number of male calves will also help save an estimated Rs 20,000 crore. A large number are rendered unproductive every year, due to increasing use of tractors and farm machines. In olden days, bulls and oxen were used to plough fields and crush oilseeds. With machines and tractors taking their place, the animals are rendered useless after some time. The problem has got complex after many states banned slaughter of cows and their breeds. This has led to a proliferation of oxen and bulls, particularly in prominent agricultural states.
"If you don't have ox and bulls, there won't be any issues around cow slaughter, as killing of female milch cows is strictly prohibited," the scientist explained.
India has 299 million bovines, said the 2012 livestock census. An estimated 84.1 million were males.
ACCELERATED GENETICS HITS BULL'S-EYE
- Livestock scientists working on sex-semen technology to produce female-only calves
- Technology as it exists today is patented in the US. Indian scientists are working on developing a domestic version of the same
- Technology involves cleaning or washing all 'Y' chromosomes from a male sperm and injecting the same into a female calf
- A lesser number of ox and bulls will save around Rs 20,000 crore per year as they are largely unproductive
- Unproductive cattle are a drag on the economy and of no use to farmers; many states have banned their slaughter as well
