Farmers, women, youth get training in goat farming

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Amritsar, under the aegis of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) and Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute (ICAR-ATARI), Zone-I, Ludhiana, conducted a seven-day vocational training programme on goat farming recently. A total of 32 farmers, farm women and rural youth from Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Gurdaspur districts participated.

The programme was held under the guidance of Dr Bikramjit Singh, Associate Director (Training), KVK, Amritsar. In his address, Bikamjit Singh briefed the participants about the mandate and functioning of Krishi Vigyan Kendras. He highlighted goat farming as a profitable subsidiary enterprise and urged trainees to adopt it for income enhancement and livelihood diversification. He also encouraged them to make full use of services provided by the KVK.

Course coordinator Dr Kanwarpal Singh Dhillon, Assistant Professor (Animal Science), delivered detailed lectures on goat breeds, feeding and nutrition management, housing systems, marketing of goat milk products, vaccination schedules and disease prevention. He also explained the economics of goat farming and emphasised the importance of proper record keeping. Trainees were given method demonstrations on age determination through dentition, diagnosis of sub-clinical mastitis and identification of common milk adulterants.

Dr Puneet Singh, Veterinary Officer, Amritsar, briefed participants about the facilities provided by the Department of Animal Husbandry and schemes available for goat farmers, including the National Livestock Mission (NLM) and Kisan Credit Card (KCC). Former trainee Jorawar Singh shared his experiences, discussing early challenges in establishing a goat farming enterprise and addressing queries raised by the participants.

As part of practical exposure, two field visits were organised. The first was to the goat farm of progressive farmer Gurpreet Singh at village Jahangir, where trainees received hands-on guidance. The second visit was to the Veterinary Clinical Complex at Khalsa College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (KCVAS), Amritsar, where Prof Sukhdev Singh Dhillon guided the participants through various departments, including medicine, surgery, gynaecology and diagnostics. They also visited laboratory units to observe disease diagnosis using blood, milk and faecal analyses. During the closing ceremony, Dr Dhillon thanked the trainees for their active participation and encouraged them to take up goat farming as a viable and scalable enterprise. Literature on goat farming was distributed to all participants.