Vol. 11, Special Issue 1 (2022)

Author(s):
Nikita and Vandana Kumari

Abstract:
Poultry in agriculture segment is one of the fastest growing sectors in India with an average growth rate of 6 per cent in egg production and 12 per cent for broiler production per annum. Eggs and poultry meat has emerged next to milk as a contributor to the output from livestock sector in recent years. The percentage contribution of eggs and poultry meat was 4.47 percent in 1951-52, which reached to a little over 9 per cent in 2015-16. In Rajasthan, the production of eggs has increased from 710 million in 2005-06 to 1,363 million in 2016-17. Meat production was estimated at 68 thousand tonnes in 2005-06 and it has increased up to 180 thousand tonnes in 2016-17. In Rajasthan, Ajmer district ranks first in both egg and broiler production in the state. There are total 27 lakh poultry birds in Ajmer district and about 95 per cent of eggs are produced by 2,000 farmers and approx 45 lakh layer farming is in this district and it has the highest contribution, i.e. 45.12 per cent of total poultry birds in the state during 19^th Livestock Census of 2012. The second largest poultry producing district of Rajasthan is Jhunjhunu with 15.78 lakh poultry bird population.