NEW DELHI, 22 Feb: The government on Wednesday modified the National Livestock Mission (NLM) by including various activities and providing 50 percent capital subsidy to individuals and organisations for establishing horse, donkey, mule, and camel entrepreneurship.
The Centre will provide Rs 10 crore for the establishment of semen stations and nucleus breeding farms for horses, donkeys, and camels under the modified NLM.
The union cabinet approved inclusion of additional activities in the NLM, union minister Anurag Thakur told reporters here.
Under the modified NLM, establishment of entrepreneurship for horses, donkeys, mules, and camel with 50 percent capital subsidy up to Rs 50 lakhs will be provided to the individuals, farmer-producer organisations, self-help groups, and Section 8 companies.
Also, the state governments will be assisted for breed conservation of horses, donkeys, and camels. The state governments will also be assisted in terms of fodder cultivation in non-forest land, waste land, range land, non-arable as well as forest land, non-forest wasteland, rangeland, and non-arable land and “fodder production from forest land,” as well as in the degraded forest land, under the modified scheme.
Further, the livestock insurance programme has been simplified. The beneficiary share of the premium for the farmers has been reduced.
The number of animals to be insured has also been increased to 10 cattle unit instead of five cattle unit of sheep and goats.
This will facilitate the livestock farmers in getting their animals insured by paying a minimum amount, said an official release. (PTI)