A healthy female Badri calf was successfully born on September 11, 2026, through Ovum Pick-Up and In Vitro Fertilization (OPU-IVF) technology at the Academic Dairy Farm, representing a significant milestone for indigenous cattle conservation. The embryo was transferred into a Sahiwal recipient cow as part of a collaborative program between ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (ICAR-NDRI), Karnal and G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, with financial support from the Uttarakhand Biotechnology Council, Haldi.
The achievement demonstrates the potential of advanced reproductive biotechnology for conservation, rapid multiplication and genetic improvement of Badri cattle, which are recognized as the state animal of Uttarakhand. The research program was initiated in 2023 under the leadership of Dr M.S. Chauhan, then Vice-Chancellor of G.B. Pant University, with scientific teams working for three years to establish OPU-IVF, embryo production and embryo transfer procedures for Badri cattle.
The technical process involved collecting oocytes from genetically valuable Badri donor cows through ultrasound-guided ovum pick-up, maturing and fertilizing them in vitro using semen from a genetically superior Badri bull obtained through the Uttarakhand Livestock Development Board. The resulting embryos were cultured under controlled laboratory conditions and transferred into synchronized recipient cows. Another synchronised crossbred recipient cow is expected to deliver a Badri calf within the next 5–7 days.
The program is also exploring cloning of elite and high-producing Badri cows, with cloned Badri embryos successfully generated through multiple stages of research. In the next phase, OPU-IVF- and cloning-derived embryos are planned to be transferred into suitable Sahiwal, crossbred and Badri recipient cows to accelerate multiplication of superior Badri germplasm. This technology enables production of multiple embryos from genetically superior female animals, increasing the rate of multiplication compared to conventional reproductive approaches.
This content may not be financially relevant.