- The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has lamented the neglect of the indigenous Ongole cattle ( Bos indicus ) breed and called for protecting and promoting the animal, which has become popular all over the world.
- Releasing a Compendium on Ongole breed of cattle at the Swarna Bharat Trust in Vijayawada on May 20, 2019, the Vice President asserted that cattle wealth was national wealth and pointed out that Brazil which has imported these cattle and produced hybrid Ongoles was earning huge revenue through export.
- Shri Naidu said the time has come for promoting Ongole cattle breed in a big way and also take up research on the animal, which is known for its toughness, high milk yield, tolerance to tropical heat and disease resistance.
- The 1200-page Compendium traces the history of the animal from 1885 to 2016 by providing information from 13 books and 80 research findings on Ongole Cattle.
About Ongole Cattle
- Ongoles take their name from the region of their main breeding area – the Ongole Taluka. Until 1904, this tract was in the Nellore District; hence the breed was called “Nellore” but the natives always called them Ongole after the region in which they are predominantly bred.
- The breed is indigenous to the Andhra region in the Prakasam District in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India.
- Ongole cattle have become more popular in Brazil due to the importance given there to livestock farming.
- The pure breed of Ongole cattle is fast becoming extinct in the land of its origin, even as some of the finest Ongole cattle are reared in Brazil for dairy products.
