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Dimapur, Nov. 27 (EMN): ICAR-NRC on mithun organised a virtual stakeholders’ meeting on ‘Issues of declining mithun population and strategies for organic mithun production’ on November 26.
An update from the institute stated that the director of ICAR-NRC on Mithun Dr. MH Khan gave a brief report on the status of mithun production, factors affecting mithun population, and initiatives taken by NRC on Mithun. He attributed high input price for jungle fencing, lack of institutional support, frequent predator attacks on mithun calves, jhuming, deforestation etc. as the probable causes for declining mithun population.
He further informed that establishment of semi-intensive mithun farming units, development of mithun breeding policy, registration of mithun as food animal, organic mithun production and registration of mithun as food animal were few initiatives taken by ICAR-NRC on Mithun to check dwindling mithun population.
Officials from the Veterinary and Animal Husbandry department stressed upon migration of farmers from rural to urban areas, shrinkage in pastoral areas, diseases like FMD and predators as the major causes for recent decline observed in mithun population.
Director of Veterinary department from Manipur, Dr. H Chaoba mentioned that Manipur has recorded a significant decline of 10% in mithun population and agreed with the causal factors put forth by Nagaland State Veterinary department.
Dr. Taba Heli, NLDB nodal officer from Arunachal Pradesh, has stressed on need to establish community mithun conservation centres and fodder nurseries to conserve mithun population, while Dr. Vineet Bhasin, principal scientist of ICAR, stated that mithun conservation should include establishment of open nucleus breeding system and mithun meat value chain linked system.
Principal scientist of ICAR-NRC on Mithun Dr. Nazrul Haque, and principal scientist of ICAR-NRC on meat from Hyderabad Dr. P Baswa Reddyalso spoke during the programme.
Dr. Abhijit Mitra, director of ICAR-CIRC from Meerut, appealed to the Nagaland Veterinary department to take a lead in promoting mithun and semi-intensive mithun farming in the state, while Dr. Rajan Gupta, principal scientist of ICAR, insisted on dissemination of technologies developed by ICAR-NRC on Mithun among mithun farmers, and Dr. Amrish Tyagi, ADG, ICAR, suggested propagating quality mithun meat through marketing strategies.
The meeting was attended virtually by all the scientists and technical officers from ICAR-NRC on Mithun, directors of different ICAR institutes, experts from ICAR-NRC on meat from Hyderabad, veterinary officials from mithun rearing states, ICAR-KVK officials and Mithun stakeholders from different states.