Calf produced using cloned Gir cow’s egg: NDRI

KARNAL: In a major breakthrough in Indian animal biotechnology, the ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, has successfully produced a Gir calf using ovum pickup and in vitro fertilisation (OPU-IVF) from oocytes (developing eggs) retrieved from a cloned Gir cow —a first-of-itskind achievement in the country, experts at the institute said.

- Bhavey Nagpal

The institute stated that this success highlights NDRI's leadership in cattle reproduction innovation. The entire process, which usually takes five to seven years through traditional breeding, was accomplished in just 39 months.

The calf, born to a Sahiwal surrogate, was created from ‘oocytes aspirated from ‘Ganga’, India’s first cloned Gir cow, and fertilised with semen from a genetically superior Gir bull, according to NDRI scientists.