The National Research Centre on Yak (NRCY) at Dirang in West Kameng district, Arunachal Pradesh, has tied up with the National Insurance Company Ltd. for insuring Himalayan yak.
- The insurance policy would shield the yak owners against the risks posed by weather calamities, diseases, in-transit mishaps, surgical operations and strikes or riots.
About Himalayan yaks
- The high-altitude yak is feeling the climate change heat across the Himalayan belt. Yak is accustomed to very cold temperatures and can survive up to minus 40 degrees but finds is difficult when the temperature crosses 13 degrees.
- A four-year-old report said the number of yaks across the country declined by almost 24.7% between 2012 and 2019.
- The total yak population in India is about 58,000. The Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir have some 26,000, followed by 24,000 in Arunachal Pradesh, 5,000 in Sikkim, 2,000 in Himachal Pradesh and about 1,000 in West Bengal and Uttarakhand.
- Brokpa nomads are engaged in yak husbandry in Arunachal Pradesh.
- Two other prominent nomadic communities engaged in yak rearing are Changpas and Dokpas in Ladakh, Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh.
(Source: The Hindu and Business Line)
