Andhra Pradesh has emerged as the leading state in India in egg production, while securing fourth place in meat production and seventh place in milk production, according to the Central Government’s estimates for 2025-26. The Animal Husbandry Department stated that the livestock sector recorded remarkable progress during the two years of governance under the alliance government.
The livestock sector contributed 12.17 percent to the state's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), highlighting its crucial role in the state's economy. Andhra Pradesh is home to several renowned indigenous breeds, including Ongole and Punganur cattle, Nellore and Macherla sheep, and the famous Aseel poultry breed.
Over the past two years, the department implemented several welfare and development initiatives. These included a free deworming programme, 26,512 veterinary health camps providing healthcare services to nearly 23 lakh animals, and the construction of 30,313 livestock sheds for poor farmers under a subsidized scheme converged with MGNREGS.
The government also enhanced compensation for livestock losses during natural calamities from ₹37,500 to ₹50,000 per animal. Additional measures included the supply of cattle feed, fodder seeds, chaff cutters, mobile veterinary ambulance services, livestock insurance, and subsidized sex-sorted semen straws. Under advanced breeding initiatives, embryo transfer technology was used to produce 67 high genetic merit calves.
For 2026-27, the department has proposed several ambitious programmes, including the utilization of 10 lakh doses of sex-sorted semen with a subsidy support of ₹15 crore to produce superior female calves. Plans also include introducing a special poultry policy, filling vacant veterinary assistant surgeon posts, constructing 777 new veterinary hospital buildings, and achieving a 15 percent growth rate in the livestock sector. These efforts are expected to contribute significantly toward Andhra Pradesh’s target of achieving a ₹3 lakh crore GSDP by 2029-30.
