Hyderabad:  South India’s largest Dairy Show 2015  inaugurated here in Hitex today by Pocharam Srinivas, Minister of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Government of Telangana.  The Show will be open from 10am to 7pm till Monday.

The show is open to public and there is no entry fee.  All are welcomed.  More than 100 exhibitors are showcasing various technologies, equipments and services related to the sector during the event such as High yielding animal breeds, Indigenous breeds. Mechanized Milking Equipments., Equipments for Animal Farms, Cleaning and Hygiene Equipments, Farm Level storage and processing equipments, kits, Animal Feeds, Vaccines, Banking & Insurance, Government Schemes, Cold Chain & Chilling plant and Equipments and Dairy Equipment and Supplies informed PSLN Rao of Action Exhibitions and Conferences, the organizers of the Dairy Show 2015.

Some of these exhibitors include Kishore Industires Pre-Engineered Cow Sheds, Animal Husbandry Dept of Govt of Telangana. Vijaya Dairy Parlour, Masqati Dairy, Indian Immunologicals, MARKFED, CORNEXT, H&R  Johnson India, Dodla Dairy Ltd, FTAPCCI, Everest Industries and others.

The show is spread over 10,000sft and several thousands of visitors are expected to visit the show. The objective of the event is to educate dairy farmers and dairy entrepreneurs on all latest trends, technology and optimizing ROI, PSLN Rao added.

Addressing the gathering immediately after the inauguration Pocharam Srinivas Reddy, Minister for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry said Dairy and Agriculture farmers are one and the same. Both are important. Dairy is as much significant as agriculture.  Lot of people live on these two sectors for their survival.  They need to be treated equally. Government is examining the request of Dairy farmers for free power as well as interest subsidy of 9 per cent.  But, only in those cases of non commercial activities, Pocharam Srinivas Reddy quickly added.  Farmers need to explore alternative sources of earning.  When agriculture is hit by insufficient and erratic monsoon, Dairy should be taken up as an alternative way to earn money. Telangana Government is committed to provide multiple income streams for farmers.

At a state bankers meet held recently it is decided to provide Rs 25000 crop loans and an additional Rs 7000 crore loans to allied fields of agriculture, he said.  Government is already providing 50 percent subsidy on grass seeds, he added.

Mohammad Mohamood Ali, Dy Chief Minister too graced the Dairy Show 2015 and inspected the stalls.

 Dr. Jithendar Reddy, Bal Reddy of Progressive Dairy Farmers Association and Dr. Jagannath, Asst Director of  Department of Animal Husbandry, Govt of Telangana and others  also graced the show.

The 4th edition of the event is showcasing a plethora of Indian indigenous & exotic breeds such  in Buffaloes such as Murrah & Zafrabadi; Indigenous Breeds: Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, Gir, Ongole, Punganur, Vechuri & Kapila; Exotic Cows: HF & Jersery.

Some of these include Punganur dwarf cattle which is among the world’s smallest humped cattle breeds and  Award Winning(Limca Book of Records) 2.8ft Punganur Bull.

Ravi Varma Chilvuri, a builder of Vishnu Datta Developers by profession is showcasing some of the rare breeds of cattle.  I have total 45 cows and bulls. 18 of them are different families, he said.  Some of these include Punganur, Gir from Gujarath, Haryani, Sahiwal from Punjab, Kosargad, Vechur etc and others, he told.  He owns the shortest Punganur which is 2.8 feet only.  There are a handful of Punganur varieties, may be 10 to 15 of them are there in the state he said.  I am collecting some of these rare and exotic desi varieties of cows to show our future generations.  Most of the desi cows are extinct and only 15 verities are surviving, he said. He spends little over Rs 1.5 lakh every month to maintain these cows. He has a farm house at Miyapur.

Vechur Cow is the shortest cow(124 cms length and 87cms  height) in the world. The breed is extinct, only 100 are remaining.  It is valued for the larger amount of milk it produces relative to the amount of food it takes.  The Vechur cow was popular in Kerala until the 1960s, but became rare when native cattle were crossbred with exotic varieties. The breed has very high resistance to diseases and its milk has healing powers.

Kuttanadan Dwarf Buffalo is the shortest Buffalo(150cms length and 90cms height) in the world. The Breed is extinct and there is only 1 buffalo remaining.  The breed derives its name from its place of origin Kuttanadu, a region in the Kottayam District in Kerala.

Swarna Kapila breed of cows with golden colour nose, skin and eyes is also showcased.  Its milk, dung and urine is magical in the cure of cancer, this Gorochana is a life saving drug.  It sheds its skin once in every 2years.  This breed is highly revered with spiritual values and got immense tolerance to diseases.

Sunil Farms showcased Kasaragod Dwarf, which is one among the three prime dwarf cattle in India along with Malnad Gidda and Vechur Cattle. These are another attraction at the show.  Origniated  from the mountain range of Kasaragod District, the cows are known for their excellent milking ability and give mineral rich milk with high feed to milk ratio.  The cattle is said to be requiring almost zero inputs and can be free ranged.

Malnad Gidda is showcased by Sunil Farms of Moinabad Mandal.  It is declared by Government as distinct breed. It is a dwarf breed of cattle native to the hilly, rainy and densely forested Melenadu region.  The milk and urine is considered to be of medicinal value.  The cattle can also be sustained solely on grazing the forests and rural terrains.  They are black and brown in colour and are shy in temperament.

Others varieties include AP Murra Champion, which earned best animal ward last year.  The  6.3 feet Ongole Bull etc was also made available. These rare and exotic varieties have become center of attraction and many were seen getting photographs along with these rare breeds is really a welcome sign of the show.

Milk in India is not a drink, but is an elixir.  Once the largest milk producer, India, soon have to import the milk, the way Dairy Farming is losing sheen.  Even many indigenous varieties or desi varieties of cows are going to be extinct very soon. The Dairy Show 2015 is being organized in this light of background to help Dairy Farmers get abridged with latest happening and technologies.