Goat farming to be promoted in M’bhanj for secure livelihood

--Heifer’s MSED project launched in State

BHUBANESWAR: Heifer India, an International NGO, on Tuesday launched a project Mayurbhanj Socio-Economic Development (MSED) to help small holder women farmers achieve sustainable livelihoods by facilitating the establishment producer companies focused on the meat goat value chain.  

Through the organisation, women would receive meat goats, fodder, crop seeds and farming equipment for goat farming and organic farming. Around 20,000 families (mostly tribals) would be benefitted out of the project, Heifer officials said. 

While launching the project, Heifer’s Asia and Europe Programmes vice president Mahendra Lohani said they have selected a targeted group of 20,000 families of several hamlets of 36 gram panchayats in the district. Besides tribals, they have also included dalits, OBCs and other people in the project which has a time period of five years, he added. 

Lohani said they would promote the breeding of Black Bengal goat among the targeted group as the delicious meat of the breed has the highest market demand. “Goat producers association will be formed along with butchers association to give the goat farmers a fair price. We can call it as market linkage of the goat meat,” he added. 

He said that his organisation works with different development organisations, Government and Non-Government agencies and banks to achieve the goal. He informed that British NGO GALVmed would support the women in poultry vaccination, while the State Horticulture Department would help in increasing quality fodder plants to feed the goats. Similarly, the Agriculture Department and Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Department would help in kitchen gardening and taking care of goat and other animals respectively. 

“It’s like an all round development of livelihoods linked with agriculture and goat farming. A family can earn around Rs 2, 50,000 per year through the mixed farming of agriculture and goat farming,” said Lohani.  

He also stated that they would include two lakh families of the State in the livelihood project within next 10 years in order to empower the rural people especially women folk.