Boosting yield and vitamin A in cow's milk

Source: The Hindu

We have been using a new feed-additive for the last 30 days and it has helped in increasing the milk yield by at least a litre a day. The desi cow started yielding more milk within twelve hours of administering the herbal capsule orally," says Mr. N. Murugan, an enterprising dairy farmer of Devanampattu village about 17 km away from Thiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu.

Mr. K. Krishnan, another resourceful dairy farmer of the same village, endorses his views, and he had recorded an increase of four litres per day from the two milch cows after giving the feed-additive to them. "Now I earn about Rs. 24 more per day, and the after meeting the cost of two capsules for the two animals at Rs. 2 per capsule, I am left with a net profit of Rs. 20 a day," explains Mr. Krishnan. He feeds the animals with the herbal capsule along with small quantities of concentrate in the evening, and the result is seen in the morning yield.
"The new herbal feed-additive, developed by a Chennai-based bio- technologist and entrepreneur, not only boosts the milk yield in cows, but also enhances the quality of milk. The fat content and SNF (solids not fat) content have also increased. The high quality milk would assure a premium price for the milk producers," says Dr. T. Varadharajan, Regional Manager of Heritage Foods (India) Limited, in Thiruvannamalai. He has been testing this bio-product on more than 7800 cows in the district in the last six months.

The animals fed with this feed-additive "Bio Jersy", are healthy with glossy skin and their immunity to diseases has also improved, according to Dr. Varadharajan. "These animals have no stress due to vaccination, and their estrous cycle seem to be regularised. Crossbred animals using the exotic blood such as Jersey and Holstein-Frisian have shown remarkable results with this eco-friendly herbal product.

The milk yield has risen by even two litres in two lactations in a day per animal. There have been no side effects on the animals after giving this capsule. After milking, there is sufficient quantity left for the calves to feed, and the calves looked healthy and active after consuming the milk. The calves also showed better appetite and were free of any stress after vaccinations," he points out.

"Bio Jersy" is an herbal product developed by Dr. C.K. Rajkumar, an innovator and entrepreneur known for his herbal and eco- friendly products. His new biotech firm has launched this product recently after extensive field-testing in farmers' holdings in different parts of Tamil Nadu. "The most revealing aspect of our field trials is that the vitamin A content of the milk collected from cows fed with 'Bio Jersy' is more than doubled.

Results obtained from leading national laboratories and international institutes in Singapore and Malaysia have shown that there has been substantial increase in the vitamin A content in the milk samples drawn from the test animals. We are still validating the finding, and once that is done, we are hopeful that our product will go a long way in addressing the vitamin A deficiency especially among women and children through this naturally-fortified milk produced using an eco-friendly product," explains Dr. Rajkumar.

Vitamin A deficiency, especially among women and children under five in developing nations, has been engaging the attention of international nutrition community during the last decade. It is ranked among the top three-micronutrient deficiencies the international community has determined to eliminate immediately.Interest in vitamin A deficiency increased in the 1980s, when researchers found that periodic high doses of vitamin A to young children in developing countries substantially reduced their risk of dying from measles.

The new bioactive feed-additive has other far-reaching beneficial effects. Preliminary analysis of the milk samples drawn from the test animals have also shown substantial increase in vitamin D and vitamin E. "We are collecting more samples and carefully analyzing all the results. We are also working with some non- governmental organizations (NGOs) and eminent research institutions and universities to corroborate the findings," points out Dr. Rajkumar.

Source: The Hindu

NEW DELHI JULY 3. The United States Patent and Trade Office has granted a patent for an Indian innovation, which has proved that cow's urine can make antibiotics, anti-fungal agents and also anti-cancer drugs more effective.

The patent has been granted to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research for the product, the result of the research conducted by CSIR's Centre for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Lucknow, in collaboration with Gau Vigyan Anusandan Kendra (Cow-related Scientific Research Centre), Nagpur.

Announcing this, the Union Science and Technology Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi, acclaimed it as a major breakthrough. The cow's urine had been described as a substance or secretion with innumerable therapeutic values in ancient medical texts such as the `Sushruta Samhita' and the `Asthanga Sangraha'. The innovation would help reduce the dosages of the drugs, thus cutting down on the costs of treatment and also its side effects.

The tests conducted before the patent was applied for included experiments with Taxol, an anti-cancer drug. The distillate, which was produced by the Nagpur centre, was found to increase the drug's activity manifold. Taxol is used in the treatment of breast cancer. The other drugs, which were experimented upon, included ampicillin, tetracyclin and rifampicin, an anti-TB agent.

Clarifying that the patent was not for cow's urine per se, but for pharmaceutical compositions containing antibiotics, anti-fungal and anti-cancer agents in a mixture with a distillate of cow's urine, scientists associated with the research said that further work was on to obtain purified isolates and to determine the mechanism of action. Animal tests and clinical trials would follow.

Dr. Joshi launched a journal of the CSIR's National Institute of Science Communication, which would be exclusively devoted to aspects of traditional knowledge. The journal, which will be brought out once in three months, would carry original research papers and review articles. The Minister also released a vision document prepared by the Department of Ocean Development, which delineates a perspective plan to promote ocean science, and support technology development to continuously upgrade the level of understanding of both local and remote ocean-related processes.

Source: The Hindu

COME MARGHAZHI (December-January) and many of the roads, lanes and by-lanes in Chennai, especially in the older and more traditional areas such as Mylapore and Triplicane, present a riot of colours, with elaborate kolams drawn using white and coloured powders in front of houses, shops and offices.

The colourful kolam tradition dates back to the Indus Valley Civilisation (2500 B.C). In the Mahabharata, the gopis (milkmaids) drew kolams to forget the pain that they experienced when their beloved Krishna is away. At a much later date, kolam-drawing is listed as one of the 64 forms of art in Vatsyayana's Kamasutra.

The art of kolam is known throughout India but by different names - Sanjhi in Uttar Pradesh, Alpana in Bengal, Mandana in Rajasthan, Chaukpurna in Madhya Pradesh, Rangoli in Maharashtra and Karnataka, Muggulu in Andhra Pradesh and Puvidal in Kerala. Although essentially a Hindu tradition, kolam is also known to the Jains, Buddhists and Parsis. It is said that Gautama Buddha was himself an expert in this art.

While the kolam is drawn throughout the year, it is specially important during Margazhi. During this month, the kolam is much larger and a lump of cow-dung is placed at the centre. The yellow flower of the ash-gourd creeper is placed on the cow-dung. Each morning, when the previous day's kolam is washed off, the lump of cow-dung is carefully removed, flattened and left to dry in the sun. On the day of the Pongal festival, celebrated at the end of Margazhi, these dried cow-dung cakes serve as fuel for cooking the sweet pongal and other delicacies. Significantly, the ash-gourd is indispensable for the kootu or aviyal cooked for the Pongal feast.

The kolam is drawn with a variety of materials such as rice powder, rice paste, marble powder, coloured powders, leaves and flowers. The kolam basically consists of dots and lines that together form a meaningful design. Usually, a grid of dots numbering from 4 to 108 is used for drawing the kolam. The points are joined with straight and curved lines or else, the lines go round the points resulting in a design consisting exclusively of curved lines.

The kolam is much more than just an aesthetic art. It symbolises happiness and prosperity. It is said that each morning, Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth, enters and blesses the houses adorned with kolams at the entrance. Hence, the kolam itself is called `Lakshmi Kadaksham' Traditionally, the padi kolam of Tamil Nadu, primarily consisting of a quadrangular design, is meant to confine Goddess Lakshmi within the quadrangle! Beggars would not seek alms from houses that did not have a kolam at the entrance. Not surprisingly, the kolam is not drawn during times of sorrow and mourning.

Insects and birds feed on the rice flour used for drawing the traditional kolams at the entrance of houses. Thus, the kolam represents man's concern for all living creatures. It is also said that these insects and birds, after eating the rice powder, would not enter the houses and thus, ensure that the houses are clean and tidy. The kolam and the bright red border or kaavi enclosing it are also believed to prevent evil and undesirable elements from entering the houses.

The kolam classes, occasionally held at the Dakshinachitra Art Centre, on the outskirts of Chennai, and the kolam competitions held in different parts of the city help to promote and preserve this colourful tradition.
S. SURESH

Pre-digested organic wastes for high quality vermi-compost

Source: The Hindu

Pre-digested organic waste is an ideal medium for vermi-composting.

THOUGH EARTHWORMS can digest a diverse range of organic residues and yield rich vermi-compost, it is better to use pre-digested organic wastes for the worms to act faster and produce high quality compost.

The pre- digested material will be converted into quality vermi-compost in about 30 days, says Dr. Sultan Ismail, Deputy Director of Murugappa Chettiar Research Centre (MCRC), Taramani, Chennai.

The composite organic wastes should be degraded using diluted fresh cow dung slurry, which is to be sprinkled over the several layers of the heap. The heap has to be kept moist by regular irrigation, and it will have to be turned two to three times at an interval of ten days.

The aerobic composting process generates an internal heat, which reaches up to 70 degrees Celsius.
The heat kills the pests and pathogens. It also destroys the seeds of weeds that may be found in the organic wastes, according to Dr. Ismail. The pre-digested waste is an ideal medium for the worms to act on.
The vermi-compost can be made using pits and tanks of any convenient size or in open windrows.
Adequate shade should be provided and sufficient moisture level should be maintained for getting good results. The nutrient level of the vermi-compost varies with the inputs. To get high nitrogen content, residues of leguminous species should be added to the pit.

Addition of blood meal will result in increased nitrogen and potassium content and bone meal will enhance the potash and phosphorus content of the vermi-compost, according to Dr. Ismail.

``Besides the major nutrients and trace elements, the earthworm casting are known to be a rich source of plant growth promoting substances such as auxins and cytokinins,'' explains Dr. Ismail.

Farmers can collect the earthworms from their own fields by employing a simple technology. In a well-shaded patch of the land where earthworm castings are found, a small area of 1 m by 1 m should be earmarked for this purpose.

About 500 g jaggery and an equal quantity of fresh cow dung should be mixed in 15 to 20 litres of water, and this diluted slurry should be sprinkled over the area.

Wet pats of cow dung is scattered over the area