Uttarakhand has home court advantage to tend to the Indian textile industry that relies on the global market for the sheep wool.
Australian Merino sheep were imported last year, the purebred yielded high quality and quantity of wool in Uttarakhand, as in Australia. Over 250 Merino sheep, valued Rs. 8.5 crore, are housed at a farm in the Tehri Garhwal district for breeding and improving the quality of wool.
The test report compiled by the state animal husbandry department ensured the wool quality is similar to wool of Merino sheep in Australia. The average fiber diameter is 16.88 microns, the most sought after by the textile industry across the world.
Indian textile industry imports 8000 metres of fine wool, valued over Rs. 2000 crore, from the global market including Australia. In seven years, India could produce almost 50% of the total requirement of the textile industry in India.
At the sheep farm, high-quality germplasm has been made to available sheep breeders through the use of modern artificial insemination in sheep and embryo transfer technology. The state government is aiming to offer sheep farming as a sustainable livelihood opportunity to the migrant population which has returned to Uttarakhand due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
