3,400 country fowl units to be grounded by March 2019

• Each unit costs Rs 4,350 out of which the subsidy component is Rs 3,560: APM Srikanth 
• Country fowls coming to the rescue of households during severe drought

Kalyandurg (Anantapur): Country Fowls which had gone into the back burner in the village economy is now returning to the backyards of the rural households with a big bang, thanks to the joint initiative of Department of Animal Husbandry and the DRDA which are promoting backyard poultries on a massive scale.

It is a two-pronged strategy, one is to supplement the income of an average rural household in view of repeated droughts caused by crop failures in the drought-stricken district and secondly to make country fowl meat available at affordable cost in urban areas and to cater to export demand. 

DRDA Project Director (PD) Venkateshwarlu told The Hans India that last year as many as 2,400 backyard poultry units had been grounded in the district. 

In the present year, 3,400 new units has been sanctioned out of which 1,400 units have been grounded and the remaining are in the process of being grounded. Mother units to supply chicks to units are also being promoted separately.
 
Assistant Project Manager (APM) of Country Fowls project Srikanth stated that each unit costs Rs 4,350 out of which the subsidy component is Rs 3,560 and the remaining Rs 810 is the poultry farmer's share. 

Each unit consists of 45 chickens of 4-6 weeks in age having a weight of 150 grams each. Besides, a kit comprising of a feeder, water tub and wire roofing with wire fence around.

Saroja, a beneficiary of the backyard poultry in Kalyandurg speaking to The Hans India said villages are ravaged by severe drought conditions and it is the country fowls that are coming to the rescue of the average village household as they are getting substantial income on sale of fowls. They are serving as ATMs (Any Time Money). 

In fact, fowls are meeting all emergency needs, she added. The birds attain maturity from 22nd week after hatching. Females attain a body weight of about 3 kg and the males about 4 kg. 

No special care is required to grow them. Fowls can be raised as free roaming birds and can be fed with locally available feeds. 

Being good scavengers, they feed on a variety of insects and green foliage. They can also be fed on farm and kitchen wastes. The birds are resistant to major infections. 

A pair of country fowls fetches anywhere between Rs 400 to Rs 500 depending on its weight. Each fowl lays 160-180 eggs per year.