The Punjab today approved a ‘Mega Dairy and Poultry Mission’ opening a new vista for persification in the agriculture sector providing a hope for a bright future to the farmers of the state.In a high-level meeting, the Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal while approving the mega mission said that we have to take Punjab agriculture on the higher orbit of development, keeping in view the saturation reached in the agriculture production, providing viable and futuristic persification alternative to the farmers and to create dairy and poultry industry of international standards in Punjab. Focusing on doubling the production of Milk and Poultry products in the state, Mr. Badal said that the mission was approved with the intension of making Punjab No. 1 state in these areas. He asked the department to finalise the blueprint of incentivising dairy farmers, chalk out a special program for diary farms, commercial dairy farms, financial pattern of these dairy farms, their linkeages with the cold chains or stakeholders and focusing on improvement of breed of milch-cattle to raise the milk production. Mr. Badal said that concerned department would work in a coordinated manner in this mission.Mr. Badal said that the department should focus on importing semen of highest yield cattle via global tenders and if need we should work out a scheme to import high-milk yield cattle from a country, whose weather conditions were in tune with Indian conditions. He said that department should work out a detailed proposal to provide imported cattle to the dairy farms and educate them in latest techniques of dairy farming. Impressing upon the need of adopting latest technology in Dairy and Poultry farming, Mr. Badal said that we would have to improve the standard of milk and poultry products according to international norms to facilitate their export to other countries. He said that with Integrated Check Post at Attari becoming fully functional there was a vast scope to export south-east Asian countries and to Gulf.Asking for statewide herd census, Mr. Badal said that the mission headquarter must have detail of each cattle along with the name and photograph of owners. He said that it would be the responsibility of mission to work out a detailed plan for veterinary care of all breeds of cattle.Stressing on the need for involving stakeholders for the success of this Mega Dairy and Poultry mission, Mr. Badal said that we must involve Multi National Companies procuring milk from Punjab for the success of this mission. The Mission director was asked to submit detailed plan of action within 15 days. Prominent amongst those were present in the meeting included P. S. Aujla, Principal Secretary to Deputy CM, Jagpal Singh Sandhu, Principal Secretary Animal Husbandry, Mandeep Singh Sandhu and Manvesh Singh Sidhu, Special Principal Secretary to Deputy CM.