Context: Recently, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying unveiled a blueprint of the National Digital Livestock Mission (NDLM). 
National Digital Livestock Mission

• The NDLM would be a digital platform developed by Dept. of Dairy and Animal Husbandry on the foundation of the existing Information Network for Animal Productivity and Health (INAPH).
• It aims to create a farmer-centric, technology-enabled ecosystem where the farmers are able to realize better income through livestock activities with the right information.
• The bedrock of NDLM will be the unique identification of all livestock, which will be the foundation for all the state and national level programmes including domestic and international trade.
• The farmers will be able to effortlessly access the markets, irrespective of their location or holdings through this digital platform as a wide-range of stake-holders will be connected in this ecosystem.
• This system will also include robust animal breeding systems, nutrition, disease surveillance, disease control programmes and a traceability mechanism for animals and animal products.

Why need such mission?

• The livestock sector has a unique combination of being the backbone of rural livelihood.
• The growth would have been a lot better if there were concerted efforts to harmonise programmes across the country in order to create an ecosystem that is conducive for growth of the sector.
• This has been the main idea behind the deployment of NDLM, keeping the welfare of the farmer at the core.

National Livestock Mission

• National Livestock Mission is an initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
• The mission, which commenced from 2014-15, has the objective of sustainable development of the livestock sector.
• NABARD is the subsidy channelising agency for following schemes, under Entrepreneurship Development & Employment Generation (EDEG) component of National Livestock Mission.

Poultry Venture Capital Fund (PVCF)

• Integrated Development of Small Ruminants and Rabbit (IDSRR)
• Pig Development (PD)
• Salvaging and Rearing of Male Buffalo Calves (SRMBC)
• Effective Animal Waste Management
• Construction of Storage Facility for Feed and Fodder