Conservation and improvement of indigenous cattle in Rajasthan state Tapesh Mathur*, Secretary Rajasthan Gosewa Ayog, Government of Rajasthan, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India *E-mail: gosewaayog@raj.nic.in, tapeshmathur@yahoo.co.in
Abstract Rajasthan, being a desert state of India, as harboured many breed of cattle which are well adopted to survive in the adverse climatic conditions. However, because of the uncontrolled and unplanned cross-breeding program there is a diminishing number of the indigenous breeds. The crossbred cattle are unable to adjust to the harsh climate and are more prone to many diseases thus making the cross breeding program a failure. As a result some of the best breeds of Rajasthan like, Tharparkar, Rathi, Nagori have declined significantly in number. This paper discusses various scientific methods, which are practically applicable, to preserve the indigenous germplasm and further improve the breeds for better performance. Top Key words Indigenous cattle, germplasm conservation, Tharparkar, Rathi, nagori. Top |