The Sacred Gauvansh

Pulikulam cattle is found in Madurai, Sivagangai and Virudhunagar districts of Tamil Nadu. They are popularly known as *Jallikattu cattle.

They are powerful and aggressive draught breed cattle.The cows are generally grey or white in colour and the bulls are dark grey or black. Their forehead is prominent and they have tight skin with thick dewlaps. The ears are small and pointed outwards.The Hump is large and well developed and the horns are very sharp and extend to the top and then curve inwards.

*Jallikattu is an ancient sport played in Madurai, Theni, Dindigul, Trichy districts of Tamilnadu where men try to prove their valour by controlling the bull by holding the hump. If no one is able to control the bull, the owner of the bull is awarded and if any man controls the bull, he is suitably rewarded. This sport ensures that the breed flourishes and it brings out the intertwined relationship between man and the bovine. In modern days there are concerns raised that bulls are made aggressive using chilly powder and men showing up in hospital with bull gore injuries. It is for the people to decide, but there seems to be no dearth of interest in the sport as of today.

Dhani cattle are a multipurpose breed of cattle originating in Punjab province of Pakistan and also found in Punjab region of India. The breed has many color patterns. And they have different names according to their color patterns. The animals with white coat with black spots are called Chitta Burga. Black coat with white spots animals are called Kala Burga. They are medium sized animals with compact sized body. They have small ears, small dewlaps and stumpy horns and small udders.

This is breed perhaps only in competition with the Gir seldom needs an introduction. Regardless, this is quite a popular breed originating in Punjab and were once reared by the Junglie herdsman. They are one of the best dairy breeds in Bharat and have significant features including tick resistance, heat tolerance and general parasite resistance. Due to such characteristics, they have been exported to Asian and African countries. Once again, which is getting quite annoying at this point, they have also been developed in Australia for beef production. They appear red in colour, with variations.

This breed as observed from its name is indigenous to Sindh which is today a province of Pakistan. They have very good characteristics including hardiness, heat resistance and high milk yield. It’s because of this they have gained enormous popularity and been exported to many countries including Australia where they were crossed with english breeds for beef production. This resembles the plight of the Gir cow who has been subject to similar perverse development and is indicative of the plight of Bharat despite this breed being present in Pakistan. As long as Gaumata with the features described in our shastras are butchered, the nation shall continue to stagnate. They appear to be dark red in colour though this may vary and at times may be a bit black too.

The Nimari breed is native to Madhya Pradesh and is originated through the intermixture of the Gir and Khillari breeds. It derives its body frame and forehead shape from the Gir and its hardiness, temper and agility from the Khillar. They are generally well proportioned and compact in terms of appearance with a red colour with white patches/splashes though this differs depending on the strain for example the Khamgaon strain is black or light red and white. They are used primarily for draught purposes though some have shown to have decent milking capacity.

Nagori Breed is native to Jodhpur and Rajasthan. They may have origins from the Hariana and Kankrej breeds and intermixture may have resulted due to migration as a result of famines. Nagori is well built, docile and especially agile which is particularly useful for draught purposes. They appear in white and grey and other notable features are its straight backs and powerful quarters and neck.

This breed as observed from its name originates from the region of Mewat which encompasses the states of Rajasthan, Haryana and U.P and is even called Kosi named after a town in Mathura where they are sold in significant numbers. Mewati may have origins from many different breeds including Hariana, Gir, Rath and Nagori. They are generally well built but docile making them apt for draught work but the cows have good milking capacity as well. Appearance is generally white with darker shades at the neck among other places.

This breed is native to Madhya Pradesh though they are bred in Rajasthan and in Hyderabad. Their built does vary depending on the characteristics needed which are primarily draught based (useful especially in black cotton soil) though they are poor milkers. They are said to resemble Kankrej cows. Generally, they can be observed to have short and compact bodies with powerful legs and are generally have grey regions on the neck, shoulders, hump etc.

This breed is indigenous to Maharasthra and gets its name owing to its striking red coloyr. They are said to have been developed in the regions/districts of Latur, Kandur taluk in Nanded district and Parbhani district in Marathawada region and some are even found in Karnataka. The breed is said to have gotten royal patronage from King Somadevaraya dating back to the 4th century A.D. Though they are medium sized, they are capable of decent use for draught purposes.

This breed which is also known as Kabri (mixture of colours) is native to the Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh.Their is a possibility that this breed may have originated from the crossing of Nepalese Hill cattle (Morang) and local white cattle.They are small with a narrow face, small ears and big bright eyes and short features in general. Usually, their colour consists of an intermixture of black and white. They are quite active and fiery tempered requiring some effort to train but nonetheless are useful for draught purposes but mature late. The Tharu tribe is mainly responsible for keeping this breed alive although the Pasi and Yadav communities also contribute to an extent.

The Rathi breed is native to Bikaner and Ganganagar in Rajasthan. They are said to have originated from the crossing of the Sahiwal and Tharparkar breeds. It is found to be red or tan with occasional presence of of spots. The Rathi have gained some attention because of their disease and climate resistance capabilities. What’s surprising and ironic is that Muslims seem to have played a major role in breeding practices for around 150-200 years and now they are under threat simply because of our negligence and cross breeding.

This breed is native to west Bengal and Sikkim though it is said they originated from Bhutan. They are mostly black and white in colour with a massive build. Siri cattle have a thick coat said to protect them from heavy rains and cold weather. The head is relatively small and the hump is noticeably forward compared to other breeds. They are well conditioned to the rugged environment of mountains and are used for draught purposes.

This Punganur breed originated from the Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh. This breed is one of the world’s smallest cattle. The cow has the back sloping downwards from front to back with the tail touching the ground. It comes in different colours like white, black and brown. They have a broad forehead and short horns that are crescent shaped and curves backward. They produce 2 litres of milk per day but it has very high fat content upto 8%. It is said that ghee prepared from this cow’s milk is being used as an offering to Bhagavan Venkateshwara.

Ongole is a prominent dual purpose breed from Ongole region of Andhra Pradesh. This very tall, white or grey breed is known for extreme heat tolerance, disease resistance and capacity to thrive on scanty resources. The eyes are elliptical with dark patches around it. It has short horns that grow either upwards or inwards. The dewlaps are very smooth and thick and start from the lower jawbone. The legs are long with dark patches in the knees. Ongole cows are in general very gentle and docile in nature. The breed produces moderate milk with an average of 798 kg per lactation and with an average fat percentage of 3.79%. Sadly, this breed has been most exported to foreign countries for breeding for beef.

Gangatiri is a dual purpose cattle breed of India found along the eastern Uttar Pradesh and western parts of Bihar. These animals have moderate bodies with coat colours that are either complete white (Dhawar) or Grey (Sokan). The face is narrow with short ears; the forehead is prominent, straight and broad with a shallow groove in the middle. The eyelids, muzzle, hooves and tail switch are generally black in colour.

Alambadi cows are medium-sized draught cows with a compact and strong body with well-arched ribs, a well-developed hump and broad and thick dewlap, a tail of medium length. They are native to Dharmapuri in Tamilnadu. They are either black or dark brown with white spots and a shiny coat that reflects their good health. They have long, lyre-shaped horns that extend backward and slightly upward. They are not a good producer of milk but the quality of milk they produce is very high.

This breed is quite interesting. It is native to Karnataka but its origins is recent. It is said that during the 19th century, some rajas tried to create a distinguished breed for agricultural purposes in the black cotton soil (watershed of the River Krishna and other adjacent rivers in southern portions of Bombay and Krishna Valley tract) in which it finds use today. This breed is a cross between the Ongole, Gir and Kankrej among other wild cattle and Maharaj Sangli contributed to its development. It is known for its massive but loose build and is gray-white in colour with variations. Its massiveness plays a tremendous role during the rainy season in the cotton black soil which is difficult to work with otherwise. The cows have varying milk producing capabilities.

Tharparkar is an important dual-purpose breed originating from the Thar desert of Rajasthan. Of medium height, their colour is generally white or gray but black, red or combinations of same are also found. Dewlaps is big and wide and has lot of wrinkles but smaller than Sindhi and Sahiwal cows. Their ears are long, semi pendulous and hangs forward. It has large udders like Gir and Sahiwal. The naval flap portion of females are very prominent.They are friendly with people, but if frequent attention is not given, it becomes aggressive. Average milk yield is 2000kg.

This breed is native to Maharashtra and Karnataka. Khillar literally means a herd of cattle and there is a special tribe of cattle breeding professions of the above called thillarris. It is compact and tight skinned with a white appearance that may vary. The head in particular is clearly prominent and distinguished from others owing to the long and convex shape. They find use as draught animals (medium).

This breed is native to the Kheri District of U.P. It is related to the Malvi breed which is apparent in the case of horn formation but the Kherigarh is distinguished owing to its lighter appearance. They are generally white or gray with a small face, horns, neck and eyes. Kherigarh cows aren’t notable for milk production but the bulls are good for draught purposes.

This breed is native to Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh and is also known as Kenwariya derived from Ken River flowing between the two states. The Kenkatha are small yet sturdy and have a short head but a broad forehead. Most other features follow the same trend and are known for their relatively weaker draught capabilities but can survive on less feed.

This breed is native to Gujarat and Rajasthan particularly from the southeast of the desert of Kutch. It is known as Wadhiar in Radhanpur getting its name from the community of herdsman known as “Wagadia”. They are known to be one of the heaviest indigenous breeds and are mainly used for draught purposes and even produce decent milk quantities. Skin colour ranges from gray to black although they may even be red to an extent. What’s particularly interesting is that they are resistant to attack from ticks and generally have low rates of contagious abortion and tuberculosis.

This breed is native to Tamil Nadu and are bred mainly in the coimbatore district. There are apparently two varieties with one being large and the other one small. The Kangayam are notable for their draught capabilities while this isn’t generally the case for milk production although they at times produce a decent quantity. The males are usually gray with certain regions of black colour while the females are usually white with some gray markings on the knees. Generally, they are of a moderate size but this varies depending on the variety along with a noticeable difference in horn orientation.

This breed is native to the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The features aren’t necessarily too pronounced to apart from its gray/white colour along a short face and a medium-large build. They have good endurance capabilities for draught purposes.

This breed is found in the southern region of Karnataka near the Mysore region. Interestingly the Hallikar gave rise to the Amrit Mahal variety. They are usually gray in color and exhibit a medium build with notable long backward horns and a decent hump size. The breed is extremely good at draught activities and has even been employed in cart racing.

Unarguably the most popular, this breed is native to Gujarat. The Gir is having a rounded or domed forehead, long ears and horns that usually grow backwards and raise upwards. They are usually consisting of their signature red color for skin although they may have white patches or an extended one. The breed is popular for its great milk production capabilities and has been used in many breed development initiatives even across other varieties such Red Sindhi and the Sahiwal. Unfortunately it didn’t end there as the development of the Brahman cattle (USA) has been contributed to by our indigenous cattle including the Nellore and of course the Gir. This “Brahman” cattle is known for its disease and external factor resistance is also find use for milk production and of course beef. It is a shame for all Hindus and this isn’t the end as the Gir cows have been extensively “developed” in Brazil and yes beef is also part of the equation.

This breed is native to Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh found in the districts of Wardha, Nagpur and Chindwara.They are a dual purpose breed with good milk production and draught capabilities. Similarities between the Ongole and Gaolao is observed with the latter being lighter with marked agility. They appear to be white or light gray with an almost coffin shaped skull, large dewlap and a moderate size hump. What’s fascinating is that this breed was used by the Marathas for efficient (quick) army transport in the hilly regions of Gondwana.

This breed is indigenous to Karnataka. It has a large size and appears to be generally gray in colour albeit with black and white tinges. It has various markings of the aforementioned colours on the face and dewlap and the bulls are particularly known for their endurance for draught purposes.

This breed is indigenous to the Bachaur and Koilpur of Sitamarhi district in Bihar. Interestingly, the Bachaur seem to exhibit close similarity to Haryanvi cattle. They are mainly white or gray-white in colour and have a noticeably flat forehead. The eyes are quite prominent while the horns, ears, dewlap and hump are medium sized while the tail is short. They are not good milk producers but have medium draught capabilities (bullocks) with a capacity of ⅔ of a ton.

This breed is indigenous around the Bargur hills in Anthiyur Taluka of Erode district in Western Tamil Nadu. They are of an aggressive disposition and are noticeable through their medium build and them having red skin with dispersed white patches. The cows are not known for good milk production but the bulls are notable for their endurance among other draught capabilities for agriculture in hilly regions.

This breed is native to the hilly regions in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. The Dangis may be red and white in colour, or black and white in colour and consist of a medium build with small features pertaining to head, legs, ears etc. They are known to secrete an oily substance to protect themselves from heavy rain. The cows aren’t great producers of milk but the bulls are good draught animals. They have similarities with the Deoni breed.

This breed of cattle is also known as Dongari which roughly translates to, “of the hills” and it is said that they trace their descent from an admix of Dangi (mentioned above), Gir and other cattle. Its has a spotted black and white colour with variations in this. One prominent feature that we can observe as being derived from such mixture is the head, ears and even the horns that resemble the Gir variety along with its medium build. Cow udders are relatively prominent and bulls are good for draught purposes.