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Down to Earth

Dairy farming faces setbacks

By Khalilur Rahman
Unsound planning, mismanagement and non-availability of basic provisions have frustrated all efforts lo develop dairy farms in the private sector over the years. The Savar Dairy and Callie Breeding Farm set up with foreign assistance over quarter of a century ago has also kept Its activities mostly confined lo producing a limited quantity of milk and few milk products The main objective of this dairy farm in the public sector was to help put the dairies in the country on a sound footing. Lack of foresight as well as initiative on the port of our planners has resulted in such a poor state of our dairy sector.
This was stated by Shah Alam. President of the Bangladesh Dairy Owners' Association (BDOA) in an interview with The Daily Star al his farm tn the city.
While giving his reaction to several provisions made by the government in the new national budget for 1991-1992 for the development of livestock. Alam said that these were nothing but putting the cart before the horse. The measures to be taken in this sector, as announced by the government, arc bound to fall unless immediate steps arc taken for providing adequate veterinary service and regular fodder supply to the dairy farms at reasonable price, he added. These are two basic conditions to be fulfilled if the government really wants to raise a sound dairy and gradually reduce the dependence on Imported milk powder at the cost of our hard-earned foreign exchange, he asserted.
As head of the 60-member BDOA Shah Alam said that the problems faced by the dairy owners in running their farms were almost identical. Listing some of the major problems in maintaining cattle he said that there was a shortage of quality grass, hay. barn, gram, and a variety of pulses and oil cakes. These are largely used as fodder. Workers employed in each farm generally go out early
ing grass grown in every vacant space in the metropolis and at times in the adjoining areas. The workers collect grass bit by bit throughout the day and often come home with a small quantity which the cattle share among themselves. Alam told the Star. This is not an appropriate means to procure grass for the animals but the owners are forced to do it. he admitted. OU cakes are also very costly. The price of mustard oil cake varies from Taka 6 to Taka 8 per kilogram (kg). Rapeseed oil cake 1s hardly availabk-.
High price of medicines and acute shortage of veterinarians arc two of the major
causes which stand In the way of maintaining dairies. The owners suffer serious setbacks when cattle die of diseases without proper treatment. Essential drugs arc mostly unavailable tn the governmentrun veterinary hospitals and the owners buy those from the open market at higher prices. In order to maintain hygienic condition in the stables phenol or other disinfectants are urgently needed. But high prices of these items discourage the owners to use them thus exposing the animals to serious health hazards. Proper sanitation in cattle shelters can protect the animals from a variety of most common ailments. Alam said. He also pointed out that even an ordinary equipment like the hay-cutting tool is not available in the country. As such he had to procure one such tool from abroad at an exorbitant price. It is very simple to produce this sort of equipment locally, he added.
Another dairy owner said that the quality cow Is In short supply. The insemination programme undertaken by the government for producing high breed cattle appears to have flopped, he stated. In the Gablali cattle market in the metropolis the traders bring the animals from al) parts of the country and even from across the border in India. The
diseased und healthy cattle arc pul on sale together without any precautionary measure*. This is one of the main causes o( the spread of communicable disease* among animal*, he viewed.
when contacted, an official of the Livestock Department told The Daily Star that the veterinary service now available- in the country is quite Inadequate. He said that the loss of livestock resource* due to disease* was worth Taka 1,400 crore annually. The loss could have been substantially reduced by properly develop ing Uk- veterinary services In ihe country, he added.
The total number of vetert-
narians 1n the country Is 1200. Of them about 150 qualified veterinarians have remained out of employment for the lust two years. Whereas 395 veterinary dispensaries at upazlla headquarters have no qualified veterinarians. The total number of upazllas tn the country 1s 460. This means that only 65 upazlla veterinary dispensaries have doctors.
A senior veterinarian now employed tn government job admitted that drugs for animals were scarce and despite repeated appeals to the higher authorities a mobile medical unit could not be procured as yet for the treatment of animals on calls from cattle owners In different parts of the country. The mobile unit was due to have been procured long ago.
In order lo encourage the development of the local dairy the government has planned to create a fund out of a portion of duty Imposed on Imported powdered milk. Part of the investment of Krishi Bank and Grameen Bank will also be made available to this fund. The government will ask for free powdered milk from EEC and other countries and the sales proceeds will go to the dairy fund. This fund will be spend for procuring quality milching cows for distribution among farmers on easy terms without interest.