Aim: Materials and Methods:Results: Conclusion: Keywords:To analyze the factors associated with morbidity and mortality rates as well as to evaluate economic losses due to important diseases of bovines, mastitis, haemorrhagic septicaemia (HS) and surra in Purvanchal Region of Uttar Pradesh.A sample of 300 livestock owners were selected from each of five divisions of Purvanchal region of the state of Uttar Pradesh using multistage stratified sampling with simple random sampling without replacement at village level. The morbidity, mortality and case fatality rates due to different diseases were determined using standard statistical indices.Test. The total economic loss due to diseases in bovines was worked out as sum of mortality loss, loss in milk yield and cost of treatment of affected animals.The overall morbidity rates of mastitis, HS and surra in cattle and buffaloes were 15.5%, 7.1% and 5.3%, respectively. The mortality and case fatality due to HS was found higher in the young calves as compared to the adults in case of both buffaloes and cattle. Mortality and case fatality due to surra was greater in the adult animals as compared to the younger ones in case of both buffaloes and cattle. Total losses due to mastitis per lactation in nondescript (ND) cow, crossbred (CB) cow and buffalo were INR 868.34, INR 1, 314.10 and INR 1, 272.36, respectively. Total losses due to HS per animal in ND cows, CB cows and buffaloes were INR 2, 355.78, INR 3, 228.52 and INR 4, 262.57, respectively. Total losses due to surra per animal in ND cow, CB cow and buffalo were INR 3, 328.18, INR 6, 193 and INR 9, 872.33, respectively. The study thus revealed significant losses due to diseases in large ruminants on. There is thus ample scope for preventive measures to control the disease bovines. buffalo, morbidity, mortality. viz.Association between cattle morbidity and mortality rates and different factors was calculated by χ2cattle, disease impact,

Aim: To develop a simple mathematical model to assess the losses due to peste des petits ruminants (PPR) in small ruminants in India. Materials and Methods:The study was based on cases and deaths in goats and sheep due to PPR from the average combined data on ovine/caprine as published by Government of India for the last 5 years (2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012). All possible direct and indirect losses due to the disease, viz. mortality losses, losses due to direct reduction in milk/wool yield, losses due to reproduction failure, body weight losses, treatment costs and opportunity costs, were considered to provide estimate of annual economic losses due to PPR in sheep and goats in India. Based on cases and deaths as reported in sample survey studies, the annual economic loss was also estimated.Results: On the basis of data reported by Government of India, the study has shown average annual economic loss of Rs. 167.83 lacs, of which Rs. 125.67 lacs and Rs. 42.16 lacs respectively are due to the incidence of the disease in goats and sheep. Morbidity losses constituted the greater share of the total loss in both goats and sheep (56.99% and 61.34%, respectively). Among different components of morbidity loss, direct body weight loss was the most significant in both goats and sheep. Based on cases and deaths as reported in sample survey studies, the estimated annual economic loss due to PPR in goats and sheep is Rs. 8895.12 crores, of which Rs. 5477.48 and Rs. 3417.64 crores respectively are due to the disease in goats and sheep. Conclusion:The low economic losses as reported based on Government of India data points towards underreporting of cases and deaths due to the disease. The study thus revealed a significant loss due to PPR in small ruminants on a large scale.

In India, insurance market especially in agricultural sector is usually underdeveloped. The idea of livestock insurance emerged in India before three decades, yet, it has not operated in a significant way till date. It is well noted that livestock insurance scheme is the relevant strategy in managing different risks related to livestock farming but very little attention has been paid to address the livestock insurance needs of the dairy farmers. This study, therefore, addresses the basic question that how many people and to what extent they are willing to pay for livestock insurance and determine the main factors which influence insurance participation of dairy farmers. The data was collected from Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh in India with a sample survey of 120 cattle and buffalo farmers. For eliciting willingness to pay, a contingent valuation scenario was presented to dairy animal owners in the group of five to six. A logit discrete binary regression model was used to know the factors influencing adoption of livestock insurance. The results suggest that most of the farmers were willing to participate in cattle and buffalo insurance. The amount of premium varies across different breeds of dairy animals. The low level of education of many dairy farmers have negatively influenced the decision to purchase livestock insurance. Farmers having more experience in rearing dairy animals are more likely to be willing to pay for cattle and buffalo insurance.

The study has assessed the status and gaps in delivery of animal healthcare services, both curative and preventive, in Uttar Pradesh, by selecting 557 livestock farmers from 5 districts, one each from five agroclimatic regions of the state. The study has revealed that the policy of delivery of subsidized animal healthcare services (AHS) does not seem to be serving its real purpose as most of the farmers in the study area have been observed to avail the services of private practitioners. The analysis of attributes associated with various AHS providers has revealed that 'proximity' is the major constraining factor in the uptake of AHS. The crossbred cattle ownership, low economic status and distance from nearest AHS centre have emerged as the most significant variables affecting the choice of AHS providers. With increasing distance from state AHS centres, farmers' preference for AHS provider shifts from government veterinary officers (GVO) to private practitioners. On the other hand, ownership of crossbred cattle has shifted the preference of farmers from other AHS providers to GVO. The odds of accessing the services of private practitioners have been found significantly higher for the poor farmers. The study has reported that the farmers are willing to pay for AHS delivery but the amount as obtained from a contingent valuation exercise has been found significantly lower for poor than rich farmers. This implies that this price differential should be kept in perspective if any policy orientation towards cost recovery for AHS provision is envisaged.

The study was undertaken in Kumaon division of Uttarakhand state of India with the objective of estimating technical efficiency in milk production across different herd-size category households and factors influencing it. Total of 60 farm households having representation from different herd-size categories drawn from six randomly selected villages of plain and hilly regions of the division constituted the ultimate sampling units of the study. Stochastic frontier production function analysis was used to estimate the technical efficiency in milk production. Multivariate regression equations were fitted taking technical efficiency index as the regressand to identify the factors significantly influencing technical efficiency in milk production. The study revealed that variation in output across farms in the study area was due to difference in their technical efficiency levels. However, it was interesting to note that smallholder producers were more technically efficient in milk production than their larger counterparts, especially in the plains. Apart from herd size, intensity of market participation had significant and positive impact on technical efficiency in the plains. This provides definite indication that increasing the level of commercialization of dairy farms would have beneficial impact on their production efficiency.