New Delhi, September 12: Scientists have achieved a significant breakthrough in the conservation and genetic improvement of Uttarakhand’s indigenous Badri cattle breed with the birth of a healthy female calf through advanced reproductive technology.
The calf was born on September 11 following the transfer of a Badri embryo into a Sahiwal recipient cow. The embryo was produced using the Ovum Pick-Up and In Vitro Fertilisation (OPU-IVF) technique, offering a new approach to multiplying valuable genetic material from superior Badri cattle.
The achievement was recorded through a collaborative programme involving the ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (ICAR-NDRI), Karnal, and G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar. The programme received financial support from the Uttarakhand Biotechnology Council, Haldi.
Under the programme, eggs were collected from selected genetically valuable Badri donor cows through ultrasound-guided OPU. The eggs were subsequently matured and fertilised in laboratory conditions using semen from a genetically superior Badri bull obtained through the Uttarakhand Livestock Development Board.
The resulting embryos were developed under controlled conditions before being transferred to suitable recipient cows. One such embryo was successfully implanted in a Sahiwal cow, which subsequently delivered the healthy Badri female calf.
The development is considered important because OPU-IVF can allow scientists to obtain multiple embryos from genetically superior female animals, potentially accelerating the multiplication of desirable genetic traits compared with conventional breeding methods.
ICAR-NDRI Director Dr Dhir Singh said advanced reproductive technologies could play an important role in rapidly multiplying superior female germplasm and developing systematic programmes for the conservation and genetic improvement of the Badri breed.
The research programme began in 2023 through scientific collaboration between G.B. Pant University and ICAR-NDRI. Over the past three years, teams from the two institutions have worked to establish procedures related to OPU-IVF, embryo production and embryo transfer for Badri cattle.Another recipient cow involved in the programme is expected to deliver a Badri calf in the coming days, according to the information provided by the institutions.
Researchers are also working on the cloning of genetically superior Badri cattle. The collaborating teams have produced cloned Badri embryos as part of ongoing research and plan to transfer OPU-IVF and cloned embryos into suitable Sahiwal, crossbred and Badri recipient cows.
Badri cattle are an important indigenous genetic resource of Uttarakhand and are recognised as the state’s livestock heritage.
The latest achievement is expected to support efforts to preserve valuable Badri germplasm, expand the population of genetically superior animals and strengthen long-term breeding programmes.Scientists believe that combining advanced reproductive biotechnology with indigenous livestock resources could contribute to sustainable animal husbandry in the Himalayan region while helping conserve important local genetic diversity.
