ICAR-CIRB makes commendable achievement in Buffalo Cloning by producing 7 clones from a Single Breeding Bull

16^th July, 2020, New Delhi

Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare highlighted about the production of 7 clones of Superior Breeding Buffalo Bull (M - 29) by the ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana during the celebrations of the Virtual 92^nd Foundation Day of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research held at Krishi Bhawan, New Delhi today.

Shri Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare; Shri Kailash Choudhary, Union Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare along with the other senior officials of the Council were also present during the occasion.

Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR) highlighted the magnificent and acclaimed achievements made by the ICAR-CIRB's scientists in the field of buffalo cloning research. This includes 7 Cloned copies of a Superior Breeding Bull - M-29 and a re-cloned calf of a Cloned Bull Hisar - Gaurav born from October - 2019 to January - 2020. The Director General accentuated the achievements as the world’s first reports to produce multiple clones and re-cloning of Murrah Buffalo that is famous all over the world for its potential to produce a high quantity of milk.

Dr. B.N. Tripathi, Deputy Director General (Animal Science), ICAR stressed on the need for breeding of the best productive buffaloes through superior germplasm to achieve the targets of the white revolution in the country.

Dr. S.S. Dahiya, Director, ICAR-CIRB, Hisar, Haryana underlined the Institute’s initiatives to exploit the advanced scientific methods including buffalo cloning for enhancing the milk productivity of buffalo. He also highlighted that the Institute has 10 cloned bulls of which two are under semen production. These cloned bulls can be used to propagate elite germplasm to enhance the milk production.

Dr. PS Yadav, a principal investigator of the NASF funded cloning project, informed that the objective of the project is to produce genetic copies of superior bulls for breed improvement.

(Source, ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana)