Kachaikatty sheep enters native breed register

15-year pursuit by voluntary organisation pays at last

Kachaikatty black sheep, a native variety popular in Madurai district whose population has been dwindling, has achieved national recognition.

The National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR) at Karnal in Haryana has registered it as a breed and included it in the official register of sheep varieties in the country. This identification as a distinct sheep breed follows intensive efforts taken by Madurai-based voluntary organisation Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Voluntary Action (SEVA), which pursued the matter for the last 15 years.

Arjava Sharma, Director, NBAGR, has sent a letter, dated February 16, to the Director of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, informing him about the acceptance of Kachaikatty black sheep as a breed. “I am pleased to inform you that the ICAR Breed Registration Committee in its meeting held in January has approved the Kachaikatty Black Sheep as a breed. The accession number is ‘India_Sheep_1800_ Katchakatti Black_14040’. Registration process is over,” the Director said.

Copies of this letter were also sent to the Director of Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute at Avikanagar in Rajasthan and SEVA’s Executive Director P. Vivekanandan who had applied for registering the breed. Dr. Sharma told

The Hindu over phone on Friday that registration certificate would be sent to the Department of Animal Husbandry in one week. “This is an important development for conservation of Kachaikatty sheep. Every genetic group is important in a system and since it is in the list of registered varieties, the breeders can now get financial support from State government,” he said.

“Lot of data collected”

Mr. Vivekanandan is happy that the sheep breed, which is on the verge of extinction, has got a fresh lease of life. “We have been saying that Kachaikatty black sheep is a distinct breed. Lot of data was collected and breed description details such as phenotypic measurements were given. This is a breed that lasted for several centuries and the recognition will be celebrated aptly,” he added.

A team from the NBAGR visited Kachaikatty and surrounding villages last year to study the breed characteristics and submitted its report to the registration committee.