PM Modi feeds Punganur cows on Makar Sankranti: Why this breed is special

Prime Minister Narendra Modi fed Punganur cows on the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti on Sunday (14 January). The pictures show the PM tending to the dwarf cattle breed on the lawn of his 7, Lok Kalyan Marg residence in New Delhi.

He can be seen petting the cows and feeding them grass and other fodder. According to reports, Hindus believe feeding grass to cows on Makar Sankranti brings benediction. Modi’s gesture has brought this cow breed to the limelight.

What are Punganur cows? Let’s take a closer look.

Punganur cows

Punganur cows are a rare breed native to Punganur municipality in Andhra Pradesh’s Chittoor district.

Known for its dwarf stature, these cattle are about 70-90 cm tall and have an average weight of 115-200 kg.

The cows, marked by a broad forehead and short horns, are ideal for small-scale dairy farming and organic farming. According to Indiatimes.com, the cow, known for its rich milk, yields 3 to 5 liters of milk every day.

गौ सेवक मोदी!

मकर संक्रांति के पावन अवसर पर प्रधानमंत्री श्री नरेन्द्र मोदी ने आज अपने आवास पर गौ सेवा करते हुए गायों के समूह को चारा खिलाया। pic.twitter.com/MTZkK4wO5X

— BJP (@BJP4India) January 14, 2024

Dr BL Chidananda, a retired professor of Animal Sciences from the University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, told News18 that these cows are a “gold mine”. “The milk of this cow also has the element Au, the chemical name for gold. Even today, many temples of Andhra Pradesh, including the famous Tirupati Thirumala Temple, use the milk of a Punganur cow for Ksheeraabhishekam (milk offering to the deity),” the expert explained.

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Punganur cows are reportedly one of the world’s smallest humped cattle breeds. Their high-fat content milk is used for making ghee, butter and curd. The milk of this cattle breed has a high-fat content of eight per cent compared to 3 to 4 per cent in other indigenous breeds, according to News18. Its milk reportedly has medicinal values.

“The milk a Punganur cow provides has high nutritional value. Known for its high-fat content A2 milk, rich in nutrients such as Omega fatty acids, calcium, potassium, and magnesium, which are essential for maintaining good health,” Chidananda said.

These highly adaptable cows are drought-resistant and can survive on dry fodder such as grass, straw, hay, and so on, as per an Agri Farming article.

Punganur cows have a docile temperament which makes them easy to handle. These social animals are resistant to common diseases and parasites, the article added.

Seen as a status symbol, celebrities and other popular personalities have reportedly adopted this breed as a pet. These cows cost anywhere between Rs 1 lakh to 10 lakhs depending on the purity and health of the cattle, News18 reported citing farmers.

From endangerment to revival

Punganur cattle faced a threat of extinction at a point when dairy farmers pushed the animal for an increased milk production. These cows became a liability for farmers compared to hybrid cattle which can make more milk, as per Indiatimes.com.

As farmers started to sell the breed or abandon them, the number of the cattle dropped to a few hundred.

To revive their population, the Andhra Pradesh government kickstarted ‘Mission Punganur’ in 2020. Under the initiative, the state government sanctioned Rs 69.36 crore to AP Centre for Advanced Research on Livestock Limited for increasing the population of the cattle using IVF technology.

The project included using low genetic merit cows as surrogates and producing elite offspring. The AP government planned to enhance the reproductive efficiency of these cows by three to four times, as per The Hindu report.

The mission also aimed to get at least 8.5 off-springs from each cow in five years rather than 2.5 off-springs during the same period under normal scenario. As many as 1,690 offspring are likely to be produced from 200 superior donors, the report added.

According to News18, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is also a part of the conservation efforts and has been rearing a bunch of these cattle, a veterinarian expert from AP said.

With inputs from agencies