ICAR-National Research Centre on Mithun celebrated 32nd Foundation Day.
ICAR-National Research Centre on Mithun celebrated 32nd Foundation Day
On 2nd Jun 2020 (Friday) ICAR-National Research Centre on Mithun (ICAR-NRCM), Medziphema, Nagaland celebrated its 32nd Foundation Day.
Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra Secretary, DARE and Director General, ICAR graced the function as the Chief Guest from New Delhi via video conferencing. He inaugurated the new website of ICAR-NRCM and state-wide painting and drawing competition for school children of Nagaland. He praised the efforts of the ICAR-NRCM in deciphering the origin of mithun by next-generation sequencing, attaining a high success rate of artificial insemination in mithun, and providing regular training to mithun farmers. He also stressed to explore and utilize the latest technologies like microchip and GPS tracker to ensure traceability. He spoke of the need for developing mithun breeding policy, genomic selection of mithun bulls, extended use of embryo transfer technique in mithun, and promoting and branding of mithun meat and milk.
The Guest of Honour, Dr. Kamal Malla Bujarbaruah, Former Vice-Chancellor, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat and Deputy Director General (Animal Science), ICAR delivered the Foundation Day lecture via video conferencing. Dr. Bujarbaruah, who also served this institute as the Director, praised the hard work of the entire ICAR-NRCM family and underlined the fact that mithun has a remarkable ability to thrive in forests without being susceptible to a wide range of pathogens and parasites. He urged to take up future research on rumen microbiome, mithun genomics, improving germplasm, and multiplying the same through assisted reproductive technology.
Dr. Bhupendra Nath Tripathi, Deputy Director General (Animal Science), ICAR and also the Guest of Honour appreciated the efforts of the Institute in benefitting a huge proportion of the tribal population of northeast India, especially mithun farmers and in increasing the population of mithun and its conservation. Dr. Tripathi urged to focus on the impact of diseases and finding out the risk and causal factors that have led to a decline in the mithun population in Nagaland.
Dr. Abhijit Mitra, Director of ICAR-NRCM, welcomed all the dignitaries and highlighted the achievements of the institute over the last 32 years.
On this occasion, the Directors of several Animal Science institutes of ICAR including Dr. R. K. Singh, Director, ICAR-IVRI, Izatnagar, Dr. Ragvendra Bhatta, Director, ICAR-NIANP, Bengaluru, Dr. V. P. Singh, ICAR-NISHAD, Bhopal, scientists, staff members of several KVKs and farmers from all the mithun rearing states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, and Nagaland participated online in the program.
