World’s first cloned cow Kaga dies in Japan
Tokyo, Oct 10: The world’s first cloned cow, named Kaga, has died due to natural causes aged 21 years and three months at the same research centre in Japan where it was born, government sources said on Thursday.
Kaga was born in July 1998 at the Ishikawa prefectural livestock research centre as part of a joint research project with Kinki University – now known as the Kindai University – using the same technology used to clone British sheep Dolly two years earlier, reports Efe news.
Twin cows Kaga and Noto were born as a result of Japanese research on bovine cloning, with the latter having died in May 2018.
Kaga, who died of old age (the normal lifespan of cows is 20-25 years), began to have problems standing up in September and was given nutritional supplements and an anti-inflammatory drip in its legs, officials of the research centre told local news agency Kyodo.
However, the cow could no longer stand in early October and was pronounced dead on Wednesday.
In 2006, a total of 14 cloned cows had been produced at the Ishikawa centre, but the research – originally aimed at improving the production of meat and milk – was scaled back after the distribution of cloned cow meat was restricted in the country in 2009.
The cloned cattle in Ishikawa have been kept to study the life expectancy among such animals.
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Misuse of power, money to control election mechanism seen during Maharashtra polls: Sharad Pawar
Pune (PTI): NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday claimed the misuse of power and money to control the entire election mechanism, which was never before seen in any state assembly or national polls, was witnessed in Maharashtra.
Pawar made the statement when he visited senior activist Dr Baba Adhav, who is protesting against the alleged "misuse of EVMs" in the recent state polls in Maharashtra.
Adhav, who is in his 90s, began his three-day protest at Phule Wada, the residence of social reformer Jyotiba Phule, in the city on Thursday.
The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies, the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), have been alleging manipulation of EVMs in the recently held Maharashtra Assembly elections, which saw a landslide victory by the Mahayuti.
The Mahayuti, comprising the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP, won 230 out of 288 assembly seats in the November 20 polls, while the MVA managed just 46 seats.Talking to reporters, Pawar said elections were conducted recently in the country, and there is a restlessness among the people about these.
Baba Adhav's agitation represents this restlessness, he said.
He said, "There is a murmur among the people that the recent polls in Maharashtra saw 'misuse of power' and 'floods of money', which was never seen in the past. Such things are heard of in local-level polls, but taking over the entire election mechanism with the help of money and misuse of power was not seen before. However, we witnessed it in Maharashtra, and people are restless now."
He added that people were recalling late socialist ideologue Jaiprakash Narayan and felt somebody should take a step forward.
"I heard Baba Adhav has taken a lead into this issue and is agitating at Phule Wada. His protest gives hope to the people, but it is not enough. A mass revolt is necessary, as the danger of the parliamentary democracy getting destroyed looms," Pawar said.
The former Union minister said those who have reins of the country in their hands are least bothered about this.
"Despite widespread discussion over it (alleged misuse of EVMs) in the country, whenever the opposition tries to raise the issue in the Parliament, they are not allowed to speak. Opposition leaders have been seeking an opportunity to speak on these issues for six days, but their demands have not been accepted even once. It shows they want to attack parliamentary democracy," he claimed.
He said Dr Adhav's protest is a fine example of someone revolting against the issue and expressed confidence that his protest will create a ripple effect.
