“Doodh hai wonderful, pee sakte hai roz glass full,” said a 90s jingle that had most of India drinking milk like fine wine in different combinations. Dairy and particularly milk have had a vital history in the Indian subcontinent not only in the form of consumption but also production. It is the world’s largest milk producer, contributing approximately 24% to 25% of the global milk production.Along with maintaining its own excellent dairy production system, India has helped out other countries with their dairy sectors too. One of the earliest examples of this lies in the form of a bull that went from India’s Gujarat to Brazil.
Krishna: The bull
It was the year 1958 when Brazilian cattle baron Celso Garcia Sid sent cowboy Ildefonso dos Santos to India with the aim of finding a bull that could enhance the Brazilian livestock, as per the BBC.Sid was browsing through photographs when his eyes fell on a calf named Krishna. His coats were reddish white and his horns hung downward. The cattle baron immediately ordered the purchase of the strong bull, which arrived two years later in the country.During that time, the cowboy described Krishna as “a colossus.” “Nothing that is said about this animal can reveal anything-it is a colossus,” he had said.However, rather than being bought, Krishna was gifted to cowboy by the Krishna Kumarsinhji Bhavsinhji, Maharaja of Bhavnagar and first Indian Governor of Madras.
The Indian bull behind Brazil’s milk production
Krishna’s arrival proved to be extremely beneficial for Brazil’s cattle and dairy. He created a genetic revolution in the country’s cattle market and now, his lineage forms 80% of Brazil’s milk production.In India, Krishna helped increase the value of the Gir breed, which is now considered one of the most valuable breeds in the bovine embryo market. In recent years, the breed almost vanished in the country due to failed crossbreeding attempts and the government sought the help of Brazil to import the breed back to India.As per Guilherme Sachetim, the grandson of the cowboy, Krishna was the turning point in the history of livestock farming in Brazil. “He renewed the national dairy cattle’s blood at the time when inbreeding was restraining productivity,” he said.Not just Krishna, it is believed that the Maharaja of Bhavnagar paid a visit to the cowboy’s farm in Sertanopolis and before his death, left all his cows to him, deepening a friendship still remembered to date.
Where is Krishna now?
Krishna was more than just a bull. He left a legacy of his own in Brazil, transforming the country’s future with healthy milk. After he died, Sid embalmed his body in a glass coffin and preserved it in the farmhouse, where it remains to date. A sign which someone heaved between Krishna’s paws reads: “Want to meet Gir? Watch me!” Moreover, Krishna also received a tribute for the country’s White Revolution with its image featured on stamps and coins.Today, a strong Brazilian Gir can produce as much as 20 litres of milk per day. This is ten times more than the original cattle brought to the country nearly a century ago.