Third batch of 300 boys and girls being trained by the Punjab Livestock and Dairy Development Board (PLDDB) as ‘Artificial Insemination Assistants’ (AIAs) and ‘Women Livestock Extension Workers’ (WLEWs) will pass out next month (November) to serve the livestock farmers for providing modern breeding and nutritional services.
The Board, which is working on an ambitious project of training 2,000 young men as Artificial Insemination Assistants (AIAs) and 2000 women as Women Livestock Extension Workers (WLEWs) to provide modern breeding services and nutritional and other livestock related inputs to the livestock farmers of the province.
‘We have already trained 260 boys and girls in two batches who are serving livestock farmers in different districts providing the breeding and other related services. They have inseminated over 41,000 animals in their respective working areas besides providing the services of ear-tagging of these animals,’ said PLDDB General Manager (Field Services and Capacity Building) Dr Naveed Niazi while talking to Business Recorder on Friday.
He said that pregnancy percentage of artificial insemination being done by these young men is around 55 per cent. These young men had been selected from Rajanpur, Layyah, Dera Ghazi Khan and Muzaffargarh districts. Dr Niazi said these trained young men and women would be assigned to extend these services under the umbrella of Livestock Resource Centres (LRCs), number of which would reach to 4,000 after all the planned young men and women will be trained as AIAs and WLEWs.
It may be mentioned here that the PLDDB was working on training young men and women as Artificial Insemination Assistants (AIAs) with an aim to enhance productivity along with income and employment of rural youth through training. These AIAs will provide breeding services to the livestock farmers.