Government Increases Outlay for Dairy Development Schemes to Enhance Milk Production and Infrastructure

The government has revised two key schemes, the National Program for Dairy Development (NPDD) and the Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), increasing the budget by Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 6,190 crore. This move aims to enhance milk production, procurement, processing capacity, and related infrastructure. The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved these revisions, as announced by Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

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Boosting Dairy Infrastructure

The NPDD, a central sector scheme, now has an additional Rs 1,000 crore, bringing its total budget to Rs 2,790 crore for the 2021-26 period. This initiative focuses on modernising dairy infrastructure to ensure sustained growth and productivity. The revised NPDD aims to improve milk procurement infrastructure and processing capacity while enhancing quality control measures. It seeks to provide farmers with better market access and pricing through value addition.

The NPDD scheme comprises two main components. The first focuses on essential dairy infrastructure improvements like milk chilling plants and advanced testing labs. It also supports forming new village dairy cooperative societies and strengthens milk procurement in remote areas. The second component, Dairying through Cooperatives (DTC), continues collaboration with Japan for sustainable dairy development in nine states.

Enhancing Livestock Sector

The Cabinet also approved the revised RGM with an additional Rs 1,000 crore, totalling Rs 3,400 crore for the same period. This scheme aims to boost livestock sector growth. Two new activities have been introduced under RGM: a one-time assistance of 35% of capital cost for Heifer Rearing Centres and a 3% interest subvention on loans for purchasing high genetic merit IVF heifers.

Prime Minister Modi highlighted that the revised RGM will enhance milk production and improve indigenous breeds. The mission continues its focus on semen station strengthening, artificial insemination networks, bull production programmes, and breed improvement using sex-sorted semen. It also supports skill development and farmer awareness initiatives.

Impact of Revised Schemes

The NPDD's implementation has already benefited over 18.74 lakh farmers and created more than 30,000 jobs. Milk procurement capacity increased by an additional 100.95 lakh litres per day. The scheme has promoted advanced technology for better milk testing and quality control. Over 51,777 village-level milk testing labs have been strengthened, with 5,123 bulk milk coolers installed.

Under the revised NPDD, plans include establishing 10,000 new Dairy Cooperative Societies and forming two Milk Producer Companies with dedicated grant support in the North Eastern Region. Additionally, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) milk analysers have been installed in 169 labs, while 232 dairy plants now have advanced systems for detecting adulteration.

With these efforts under the Rashtriya Gokul Mission and other government initiatives, milk production has risen by 63.55% over the past decade. Per capita milk availability increased from 307 grams per day in 2013-14 to 471 grams per day in 2023-24. Productivity also saw a rise of 26.34% during this period.

In a social media post on X, Prime Minister Modi stated that the approval of the revised National Programme for Dairy Development will aid in transforming the sector by ensuring better pricing for farmers and creating jobs. "The decision relating to the Rashtriya Gokul Mission will boost milk production," he added.

These revisions reflect a significant effort towards self-reliance in India's livestock sector. By enhancing infrastructure and supporting farmers through various initiatives, these schemes aim to ensure long-term growth and sustainability in dairy production across the country.