Tripura leads North East with AI to increase milk production, wins national award

The Animal Resources Development Department of Tripura has been honoured with the ‘Centre for Innovation in Public Service’ Award for introducing Artificial Insemination (AI) using Sexed Semen Technology, a move aimed at boosting milk production in the state.

Neeraj Kumar Chanchal, Director of the department, said, "The department has been honoured with the ‘Centre for Innovation in Public Service’ Award for pioneering AI through Sexed Semen Technology. The award was received by me from Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir."

Tripura’s cattle population is largely made up of unrecognised local breeds, which traditionally produce low milk yields. According to the 2019 Livestock Census, the state had 6.16 lakh female cattle, of which only 1.18 lakh were crossbred or exotic.

Several cattle breed upgradation programmes have been implemented to improve the genetic quality of indigenous cows using AI. While these efforts modestly increased milk production, the state still falls below the national average in per capita milk availability.

To tackle this, the department launched AI with Sex Sorted Semen in October 2020, making Tripura the first state in the North East to adopt the technology.

"This technology helps to selectively increase the likelihood of female calf births, which is crucial for milk production. Implementing sexed semen AI in selected pockets of the state has been aimed at producing more upgraded female cattle, thereby boosting milk production and generating sustainable socio-economic growth in the dairy sector," Chanchal explained.

Since the launch, Tripura has recorded the highest number of improved female calves born through sexed semen AI in India over the last four years. Up to December 2024, 46,746 female calves were born out of 2,58,000 AI procedures conducted with sexed semen.

The initiative began as a pilot in four districts and has now expanded statewide, with AI services reaching farmers’ doorsteps.

"At present, we are carrying out AI with sexed semen extensively. With the success of this intervention, field-level acceptance and implementation have increased manifold. After the adoption of sexed semen AI in the state, it is expected that in the next 2 to 3 years, milk production will increase by approximately 49,000 tonnes, raising the total milk output from 2.47 lakh tonnes (2023–24) to around 2.96 lakh tonnes (2026–27). This will also improve Per Capita Availability (PCA) of milk from 163.38 gm/head/day (2023–24) to about 199.70 gm/head/day (2026–27)," he added.