Amrit Mahal bullock Photo: Photographer unknown, Indian government · Public domain · source ↗

Amrit Mahal cattle (Mysore draught breed)

Amrit Mahal is one of India's most famous draught cattle breeds and a heritage breed of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore. Registered with the ICAR National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR), the breed was developed and maintained for over four centuries — first by the Wodeyar kings and later by Tipu Sultan — for the express purpose of producing fast, sturdy bullocks for the royal army's transport corps. The herds are still managed at government breeding farms called "kavals" in Karnataka.

Origin and distribution

The home tract covers Chitradurga, Hassan, Chikkamagaluru, Tumakuru, Davanagere and parts of Shivamogga and Chikkaballapura in central Karnataka. Government breeding kavals at Ajjampura, Basur, Habbal, Lingadahalli and Chikkahalli, maintained by the Karnataka Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services department, hold the nucleus herds. The breed is closely related to Hallikar and Khillari and is part of the Mysore-type draught cattle group.

Appearance

Amrit Mahal animals are medium to large with a compact, muscular body. The coat is grey, ranging from almost white in cows to dark iron-grey or near-black in bulls, with darker shading on the face, neck, hump and quarters. The forehead is narrow and slightly bulging; horns are long, sharply pointed and emerge close together, curving backward and upward in a long sweeping arc — a hallmark of the breed. Ears are small and held horizontally. Adult cows weigh 320–360 kg and bulls 450–500 kg. The legs are long, straight and tendinous.

Productivity

Amrit Mahal is primarily a draught breed. Cows are poor milkers, producing only 400–600 kg of milk over a short 200–250 day lactation, with fat at 4.5–5.0%. The breed's value lies in the bullocks, which are famous for endurance, speed and ability to march long distances in scarce-fodder zones. Bullocks pull 800–1,200 kg cart loads at a brisk trot and are still used in Karnataka and adjacent districts for ploughing, harrowing, oil-mill rotation and inter-cultivation in rainfed millet, redgram and groundnut tracts.

Management

The breed has evolved to survive on the coarse natural pastures of the Deccan plateau and tolerates prolonged drought. In the kavals, herds graze on dedicated grasslands during the day and are housed in simple loose paddocks at night. Supplementary feeding with sorghum straw, redgram stalk and a small concentrate ration is given to working bullocks. Breeding is mostly by natural service within the kaval herds, and pure Amrit Mahal bulls are also supplied to selected farmers for grading-up local Mysore-type cattle.

Sources

Amrit Mahal — NBAGR breed profile. ICAR-National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources, Karnal.
Amrit Mahal — Dairy Knowledge Portal. National Dairy Development Board.