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Vanaraja rural dual-purpose chicken Photo: placeholder pending image-fill pass

Vanaraja rural dual-purpose chicken

Vanaraja is the flagship rural dual-purpose chicken developed by ICAR-Directorate of Poultry Research (ICAR-DPR), Hyderabad. It was released in the late 1990s and remains the most widely distributed improved backyard poultry variety in India, supplying both meat and table eggs from low-input village rearing. The variety anchors the Rural Backyard Poultry Development (RBPD) component of the National Livestock Mission (National Livestock Mission) alongside the layer Gramapriya (Gramapriya Rural Layer) and the rural broiler Krishibro (Krishibro Broiler Dpr).

Origin and distribution

ICAR-DPR Hyderabad bred Vanaraja as a multi-coloured synthetic dual-purpose chicken adapted to scavenging on kitchen and crop residues. Day-old chicks are supplied through state poultry farms, KVKs and SHG hatcheries and are now distributed in every major state, with heavy adoption in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and the north-east.

Morphology

The plumage is multi-coloured, predominantly brown-and-black with barred patterns that camouflage birds against predators in free-range conditions. The body frame is heavier than that of Gramapriya, with adult cocks reaching 3.0-3.5 kg and adult hens 2.0-2.5 kg by 20 weeks. Shanks are typically yellow.

Performance

Under backyard scavenging with a small grain supplement, hens lay 100-130 eggs per year; in semi-intensive units, annual egg production rises to about 160-180 eggs. Eggshell colour is light brown and egg weight averages 55-58 g. Age at first egg is 175-180 days. The male is the main commercial product: birds reach a saleable live weight of 1.5-2.0 kg in 14-16 weeks on a partial supplement, well above traditional desi chicken at the same age. Resistance to common village pathogens is good and broodiness is retained.

Management

Day-old chicks are brooded (Brooding Chicks) for 4-6 weeks in a clean enclosure on a starter ration, then released to the homestead or a fenced run with a low-cost night shelter and clean drinking water. Free-range birds scavenge kitchen waste, broken grain, green forage and insects, with a modest grain supplement at lay. Routine vaccination against Newcastle disease (Ranikhet Newcastle Disease), fowl pox and infectious bursal disease is essential. RBPD distributes Vanaraja in batches of 45 or 90 chicks per beneficiary household, supplemented in many states with feed, vaccine and shelter components. The variety is the rural-poultry counterpart to commercial broiler (Broiler Chicken) and layer (Layer Chicken Bv 380) lines.

See also: Country Chicken Nattu Kodi, Cari Debendra Dual, Giriraja Karnataka Rural, Self Mixed Poultry Feed.

References

  1. Vanaraja — Technology profile. ICAR-Directorate of Poultry Research, Hyderabad.
  2. Rural Backyard Poultry Development. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India.