The 104th foundation day of ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (ICAR-NDRI) was celebrated with enthusiasm, highlighting the institute’s significant contributions to dairy research, livestock development and the growth of India’s dairy sector.
The occasion placed special emphasis on popularising the Karan Fries breed of cattle, a high-yielding crossbred dairy breed developed by ICAR-NDRI. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Bhatia, the chief guest at the event, unveiled the Karan Fries breed.
Addressing the gathering, Bhatia congratulated ICAR-NDRI on completing 104 years and appreciated the institute’s efforts in developing the Karan Fries breed. “This breed should be propagated across the country,” he said.
Bhatia stressed the need to diversify agriculture, promote natural farming and reduce dependence on chemical fertilisers. He also lauded NDRI’s clone development programme and urged the institute to further explore opportunities in dairy products and milk exports.
He suggested that the institute should sign an MoU with Vita and encouraged women farmers to keep cows and buffaloes as a source of income. Bhatia advised students to visit villages, interact with farmers and understand ground realities before working on issues affecting the farming community.
He further stated that he was ready to donate Rs 5 lakh to all jails in Haryana if they wished to establish dairy farms. The Rajya Sabha MP also emphasised the need to improve horticulture in the state.
Dr Dheer Singh, Director of ICAR-NDRI, said it took four decades for ICAR-NDRI, Karnal, to develop the Karan Fries breed. He said India had become the world’s largest milk producer with around 250 million tonnes of milk production, but there was still a need to improve milk quality.
He also shared that the “Khet Bachao Abhiyaan”, introduced by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as a month-long initiative from June 1 to 30, was successfully completed by the institute.
