1,500 mobile veterinary clinics to be set up soon

New Delhi: In a major push to the livestock sector, the government on Wednesday announced a special livestock package for leveraging investment worth Rs 54,618 crore to revise and realign various components of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying schemes.

The allocation of funds would help in establishing 1,500 mobile veterinary clinics across the country to deliver animal health services at the doorstep of 10 crore farmers engaged in the animal husbandry sector.

The decision in this regard was taken at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), which was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The financial commitment of Rs 9,800 crore by the Centre over next 5 years for these schemes would leverage total investment of Rs 54,618 crore in livestock sector including share of investments by state co-operatives, financial institutions, external funding agencies and other stakeholders.

In his official tweet, Union Minister Parshottam Rupala said, "The Cabinet decision would help poultry entrepreneurship development which will give direct employment to 1.5 lakh farmers and 2 lakh farmers will be directly benefitted from sheep goats and poultry development."

"The National Livestock Mission (NLM) will bring sharp focus on entrepreneurship development and breed improvement in poultry, sheep, goat and piggery including feed and fodder development," Rupala said in his tweet.

"More than 50 lakh farmers will get direct and indirect employment opportunities in the cattle, dairy, poultry, sheep, goat, piggery, feed and fodder sector, through the schemes announced," he said.