Poda Thurpu
Poda Thurpu are medium-sized cattle found in western parts of Telangana, a state in southern part of India. It is commonly known as Thurpu Edlu. Local communities call it as Poda Edlu (Poda locally means spotted/speckles/blotches), the cattle usually has brown spots on its skin. The breeding area of this breed is in Nagarkurnool district of Telangana, mainly bred inside Nallamalla forest of Amrabad and the adjoining areas, including Achampet, Lingal and Padra. Description. They are medium-sized cattle with compact body. They have straight upward or forward pointing horns. They have speckled/blotched coat , which are brown in color. In most of the cases, forehead is convex with deep groove at the center. Bullocks are used for their draught capacity in terms of their speed, endurance and stamina. They are good for heavy ploughing and carting heavy loads. They are tolerant to heat and dry conditions. They can survive droughts and can stay alive with less fodder and water availability. Hyderabad, Telangana's capital, has an average annual rainfall is 790 mm and annual mean temperature of 26.6 °C. Their combative nature is helpful to protect themselves and their young calves from predators . There are stories of these cattle protecting their masters against predators. Their wild and aggressive nature may be attributed to their lives spent inside the forest. Lambadi, Golla and Madiga are some of the communities seen maintaining large herds of this cattle for generations. The cattle's strong and developed hoof helps them to work tirelessly for long durations on the fields, helping the farmers in a substantial manner. They are used in both dryland and wetland agriculture. They have good migration capacity over undulated forest topography, and they are grazed on open fields. When used for milk, the daily  yield can vary from 2 to 3 kg and lactation milk yield from 494 to 646 kg. Herd size ranges from 23 to 75. Population is approximately 15,000, which can grow in future due to programs by the state for cattle welfare. Recent recognitions. Poda Thurpu has been recognised by Telangana as its first officially-recognised indigenous cattle breed, in 2020. The Poda Thurpu has been registered at the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR) in Haryana.