Poultry farming In Nagaland Tribes: Backyard poultry farming is leading to economic empowerment in Nagaland

Poultry farming In Nagaland: Nagaland, one of the North-East states of India, is known for its rich cultural heritage and natural beauty. The tribal culture and traditional lifestyle here are an important part of the identity of this state. A total of 16 recognized tribes live in Nagaland. Whose lifestyle is dominated by non-vegetarian food. In fact, Nagaland has the highest per capita consumption of animal protein in the entire country.

However, the demand for animal products in the state is much higher than the supply. Currently, there is a shortage of about 40 percent of meat and related products in Nagaland. This shortage has become a big challenge for the farmers of the state. Poultry farming in particular has some major constraints such as unavailability of good poultry germplasm and high feed cost.

Directorate of Poultry Research Initiative: Vanraj and Srinidhi Birds

To address this gap and promote poultry farming in the state, ICAR-Directorate of Poultry Research, Hyderabad developed dual purpose poultry birds Vanraj and Srinidhi. These birds are suitable for both meat and egg purposes and are specially designed for rural and tribal areas.

The biggest feature of these birds is their appearance similar to the local indigenous birds. This similarity makes it easy for the tribal farmers of Nagaland to adopt them. Their other advantages include high growth rate, low mortality rate, brown eggs and high egg production.

Role of ICAR Nagaland Centre

To promote poultry farming in the North Eastern Region, ICAR Nagaland Centre in collaboration with Directorate of Poultry Research, Hyderabad initiated Poultry Seed Project. The project aims to produce and distribute quality germplasm of Vanraj and Srinidhi to farmers.

In 2016-17, the Centre supplied 82,647 day old and grown-up chicks to a total of 1354 farmers in Nagaland including Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh. Also, several training programmes were organized to teach the farmers scientific backyard poultry farming techniques.

Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) Assistance

Special benefits were also extended to tribal communities under this project. With the help of TSP component and TSP Sansthan Nidhi, 25,319 chicks were distributed to 738 tribal beneficiaries in 17 villages.

Before starting poultry farming, farmers were given training on poultry housing, diet, and health management. Farmers were taught how to vaccinate their flocks and ensure proper supply of medicines.

Economic Impact and Benefits

1. Farmers raised these chicks under close supervision for the first four weeks. Thereafter, they were either kept in backyard system or semi-intensive system. Local materials such as tapioca, broken rice, maize and kitchen waste were used for feed.

2. The prices of feed varied depending on the proximity to Assam. Mixed feed was available at Rs 30 to Rs 35 per kg and maize at Rs 12 to Rs 23 per kg. A total of Rs 42,55,545 was spent on feed and medicines in this project.

3. Within three to four months, the birds reached an average weight of 2.5 to 3 kg. Farmers started selling them in the market and the total live weight production was about 59,620 kg.

4. Farmers in remote districts like Kifri, Tuensang, Phek and Zunheboto prefer to raise Srinidhi birds especially for egg production due to the high price of eggs. The price of poultry meat was Rs 250 per kg in Phek and Kifri districts and Rs 200 per kg in other districts.

Economic Success Story

The project generated good income for the farmers. The sale of birds generated a total gross income of Rs 1,25,79,250. After deducting expenses on feed, vaccines and medicines, the farmers earned a total net income of Rs 71,31,525. The entire project achieved a Benefit Cost Ratio (B:C Ratio) of 2.93, which is a beneficial indicator for the farmers.

Motivation and Future Direction

The success of the project not only empowered the rural farmers economically but also motivated the educated unemployed youth of Nagaland. Now more people are taking interest in poultry farming on commercial scale and getting training from ICAR Nagaland Centre.

This initiative is not only helping in meeting the demand of meat and eggs in the state but also strengthening the local economy. This model can become an example for other north-eastern states as well.