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News: A healthy Badri female calf was born through OPU-IVF after a Badri embryo was transferred into a Sahiwal recipient cow.
About OPU-IVF Calf Born in Badri Cattle
- A healthy Badri female calf was born through Ovum Pick-Up and In Vitro Fertilisation (OPU-IVF) technology.
- Scientific Collaboration: ICAR-NDRI, Karnal, and GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, collaborated to establish advanced reproductive technologies for the conservation and multiplication of Badri germplasm.
- Process of OPU-IVF Technology:
- Oocyte Collection: Oocytes are female reproductive cells (egg cells) of cattle. These egg cells were collected from selected genetically valuable Badri donor cows through ultrasound-guided ovum pick-up.
- Fertilisation: They were matured and fertilised in vitro using semen from a genetically superior Badri bull.
- Embryo culture: Embryos were cultured under controlled laboratory conditions and transferred into synchronized recipient cows.
- Embryo transfer: One Badri embryo was transferred into a Sahiwal cow, which gave birth to the calf.
About Badri Cattle
- Naming : The breed derived its name from Badrinath.
- It was earlier known as the ‘pahadi’ cow.
- Habitat: It is adapted to the Himalayan environment and feeds on herbs and shrubs available in the mountains.
- Distribution: It is found only in the hill districts of Uttarakhand.
- Key Features:
- Physical Features: It is small in size, has long legs and has black, brown, red, white or grey body colours.
- Milk Quality: Its milk has rich medicinal content and high organic value due to its feeding on herbs and shrubs.
- Disease Resistance: It is comparatively more resistant to diseases, mostly due to its eating habits.
- Local Adaptation: It is adapted to hill terrain and local environmental conditions and is suitable for low-input farming systems.
- Threats: Indigenous cattle breeds face pressure from cross-breeding and shrinking herd sizes across India.
- Status: Badri is the first certified cattle breed of Uttarakhand.
- It was included as the Badri breed by the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources.
