Status of artificial insemination and its success for augmenting the livestock productivity in India

Status of artificial insemination and its success for augmenting the livestock productivity in India

¹Karan Mahar, ²Aparna Raj, ²Pawan Kumar,

PhD scholar, National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal

PhD scholar, National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal

PhD scholar, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izzatnagar

Corresponding author- Karan Mahar (karanmahar29@gmail.com)

 India with the production of around 230 million tonnes of milk during 2022-23 and with the growth rate of 3.83% over the previous year is highest milk producer in the world. India ranks 1^st in the livestock population in the world. Milk potential of India may be very huge but rapidly growing human population demands urgent concern. With the advancements of Assisted reproductive technologies, we can increase the progress of breed improvement programmes. Artificial insemination has clearly proven to be the most efficient reproductive technology to be exploited in field level at such a large scale. Artificial Insemination (AI) is the most affordable and convenient biotechnological tool for dissemination of improved genetics at farmers’ doorstep. History of A.I. goes back to 18^th century when Lazzaro Splannzani, an Italian Catholic priest successfully demonstrated A.I. in dogs (1780). In farm animals, horses were the 1^st animals where A.I. technique was applied.

Artificial insemination in livestock is a proven technology for enhancing milk production and productivity. Presently, AI coverage in the country is around 30% of the breedable bovines while 70% of the breedable animals are covered through scrub bulls of unknown genetic merit. There has been a stable increase in the AI coverage percentage over a decade with a constant increase of around 1% every year.

Figure 1: Coverage of Artificial insemination through several years: (Source- Annual report DADF)

In 2021-22 a total of 980.60 lakhs of Artificial Insemination has been performed in all States. Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh have the lowest AI coverage of 1% while in Kerala 100% of the breedable bovine females is under AI coverage.

Semen stations in India:

There are total of 56 semen stations in the country and of these, 49 semen stations are A/ B Graded by the Central Monitoring Unit of the Government of India. The foundation of every genetic improvement project is a professionally run semen station that rigorously follows the Minimum Standards Protocols (MSP) established and has sufficient bio-security measures in place to generate disease-free semen. This lowers the chance of disease transmission and guarantees higher fertility, which accelerates the advancement of genetics. NDDB Dairy Services (NDS), manages 4 mega semen stations having total annual semen production of around 37 million contributing more than 30% of the total semen production of the country. These 4 mega semen stations are:

1. Sabarmati Ashram Gaushala, Ahmedabad, Gujarat (India’s largest semen station)
2. Animal Breeding centre, Rai Bareilley, Uttar Pradesh
3. Alamadhi Semen Station, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
4. Rahuri Semen Station, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra

Why Artificial insemination is preferred over other Assisted reproductive technology by stakeholders?

• The first and foremost reason for its preference being cost-effectiveness. AI is generally more cost-effective than other ARTs like in vitro fertilization (IVF) or embryo transfer. It requires less specialized equipment and expertise, making it accessible to a wider range of stakeholders. Further there is no need of maintenance of breeding bull, thereby saving the cost.
• I. can help reduce the risk of disease transmission compared to natural mating or embryo transfer, as it minimizes direct contact between animals.
• The sperm of one high-quality bull can be used to inseminate 20-25 cows at same time
• I. offers scope for organized breeding management and record keeping
• Testing of progeny can be done at an early age, so the genetic improvement will be faster

Artificial Insemination: An important role in improving livestock productivity

The Indian government began to acknowledge the possibility of enhancing milk output through the cross-breeding of native or nondescript cattle with exotic breeds, thanks to advancements in artificial insemination. In order to increase milk output, the government adopted cross-breeding of nondescript Indian cattle at the field level in 1964 with the establishment of the Intensive Cattle Development Projects (ICDP), and by 1969 it had become official policy (Singh, 2016). India now holds the top spot in the world for milk production. Evidently, AI has shown to be highly successful in enhancing animals’ genetic potential for increased productivity, and it still serves as the foundation for all Indian breeding projects. The figure given below clearly explains the positive correlation between the Milk production and the Number of A.I. performed.

Figure 2: Positive correlation between milk production (million tonnes) and number of AI (million) (Source-NAAS)

Major constraints with A.I:

• Low coverage of A.I : The major hindering factor is distance of AI services to farmers. Farmers’ access to high-quality AI services is either hampered or discouraged by the distance to the veterinarian clinics offering the service.
• Poor conception rates with A.I : India’s artificial insemination (AI) fertility rate is relatively lower than those of other major milk producing nations, where AI fertility rates range from 60-72% with an average non-return rate of 60 days (Vishwanath, 2003). In contrast, India’s average conception rate is still just about 35%.
• Limited availability of bulls with high genetic merit and high-fertility: Artificial breeding requires the use of semen from bulls with high genetic quality in order to fully realise AI’s promise for improving cattle. Currently number of breeding bulls required for production of frozen semen doses is very less against the present available number of bulls.
• Frozen semen quantity and quality: Ensuring the post-thaw quality of semen significantly improves the reproductive capabilities of animals.
• Limited or non-availability of frozen semen for non-bovine species: The availability of frozen semen derived from non-bovine animals such as sheep, goats, pigs, mares, etc. is essentially lacking, with the exception of a few locations where a small number of institutes generate cryopreserved semen dosages. AI in small ruminants has not yet been conducted on a commercial basis, despite the fact that AI in sheep was introduced in India in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Principal strategies for enhancing cattle with artificial insemination:

• Implementation of Bovine Breeding Act: AI technicians should use semen doses as per the breeding policies of the respective states. Several animals belonging to well-defined breeds in their native tract also get inseminated, often inadvertently, with exotic semen causing considerable loss of indigenous germplasm.
• Use of semen from bulls of high genetic merit: Providing semen from proven bulls with good conception rate is most important in popularizing AI and expanding AI coverage. The use of progeny tested semen from registered sources can assure increased milk production across the generations, in addition to the disease control.
• Regulation of AI delivery agencies: Policy measure for strict regulation of the AI delivery systems needs to be evolved. Further, the next generation AI delivery system may be developed by designing a farmer friendly Mobile App including location tracker for animal as well as AI technician. This will help farmer to invite a nearby AI technician, who has high scores based on the beneficiary’s ratings and avail the AI service for his animal.
• Mechanism for animal identification, data retrieval and analysis: The current AI delivery system does not necessarily mandate individual animal identification and tracking for breeding purposes.
• Licensing of AI technicians: In India, a major proportion of AI is being carried out by AI technicians who are not well trained. As the skill of inseminator is very important to achieve high conception rates, increasing the number of skilled AI technicians is the need of the hour.
• Technology based semen analysis to be inducted at semen stations: There is a need to shift from traditional semen analysis to high throughput semen analysis technology like flow cytometry. These tests can be adopted by the semen stations to ensure the fertility of frozen semen doses.
• Timely treatment of infertile/sub-fertile animals and repeat breeders

Conclusion: The adoption of artificial insemination (AI) has been a transformative force in India’s livestock sector, particularly within the dairy industry. Through strategic government initiatives, infrastructure development, and a focus on breeding improvement, AI has significantly contributed to enhancing livestock productivity and genetic quality across various species. The success of AI is evident in the steady rise of milk production, the development of high-yielding indigenous breeds, and the improved livelihoods of farmers who have embraced modern dairy farming practices. Despite challenges such as infrastructure limitations and the need for continuous training, AI’s impact on augmenting livestock productivity remains substantial.

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