WESTBENGAL
19 Apr
Activities

Interface Meeting on AnGR of West Bengal under “Mission towards zero non-descript AnGR of India” held on 19th April 2022

In continuation to the series of State specific Interface meet, the 11th Interface meet for West Bengal, under “Mission towards zero non-descript AnGR of India” was held virtually on 19th April, 2022. The theme of the meet was “Characterization and Documentation of Animal Genetic Resources of West Bengal: A Mission towards Zero Non-Descript Populations”.  More than 200 participants of ICAR, WBUAFS (West Bengal University of Animal & Fishery Sciences), and Animal Resource Development (ARD) Department, Govt. of West Bengal attended the Meet.

In his welcome address, Dr. B P Mishra, Director, ICAR-NBAGR described the priorities of NBAGR for the management of native AnGR in the country. He further outlined the strategies of the National Mission towards Zero Non-descript AnGR in the country. 

Prof. Chanchal Guha, Vice Chancellor, WBUAFS emphasized the significance of AnGR characterization and conservation, as well as the need for breeding strategies for conservation and improvement of AnGR along with identification of genetic markers for disease resistance. He also ensured the full support from university for implementation of this novel mission. Prof. Tapan Kumar Madal, Director of Research Extension and Farms, WBUAFS in his message highlighted the activities carried out by the University for Improvement and conservation of AnGR of West Bengal.

During the meet, Dr. Yograj Tamang, Director, Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, Govt. of West Bengal presented the activities of Animal Resource Development with special reference to livestock and poultry improvement schemes in West Bengal. Dr. Mintu Chaudhary, CEO, PBGSBS presented use of Artificial Insemination for Cattle development in West Bengal. Dr. Subhransu Pan, Former Prof. and Head LPM, WBUAFS presented the Current status of AnGR of West Bengal. Dr. Manishi Mukesh, Principal Scientist, NBAGR presented the strategies for survey, and documentation of West Bengal AnGR towards zero non-descript population.

A panel of experts of ICAR, WBUAFS, ILRI and ILSI deliberated the strategies for documentation of non-descript AnGR and improvement of native breeds in West Bengal. It was suggested to target the district with highest non-descript population for survey, and information should also be gathered from ARD department/field veterinarians by crowd sourcing for identification of homogenous population for further characterization and identification of new breeds.