Cabinet Endorses Enhanced Dairy Development Scheme with Boosted Rs 2,790 Crore Budget
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Synopsis
The Union Cabinet has approved the revised National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) with a boosted budget of Rs 2,790 crore to modernize India's dairy sector and support farmers.
Key Takeaways
- Budget increase to Rs 2,790 crore
- Focus on dairy infrastructure and quality
- Support for 10,000 new dairy cooperatives
- Collaboration with Japan for infrastructure improvement
- Creation of 3.2 lakh jobs, focusing on women
New Delhi, March 19 (NationPress) The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday sanctioned the updated National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) with an augmented budget of Rs 2,790 crore.
This initiative, designed to modernize India's dairy industry, received supplementary funding for the 15th Finance Commission cycle spanning 2021-22 to 2025-26.
The government has allocated an additional Rs 1,000 crore to the program to enhance dairy infrastructure and elevate both milk production and quality.
According to the Cabinet, “The revised initiative concentrates on assisting dairy farmers by enhancing milk procurement, processing, and quality assurance.”
The objective is to provide farmers with improved access to markets, guaranteeing fair prices and promoting rural development.
The scheme also encompasses the establishment of new dairy cooperative societies and enhanced support for milk processing in remote regions, especially in the Northeast, hilly areas, and Union Territories.
The NPDD has already positively impacted over 18.74 lakh farmers and generated more than 30,000 jobs.
It has also significantly boosted milk procurement capacity by exceeding 100 lakh litres per day.
The Cabinet noted that “Advanced technology has been implemented for milk testing and quality control, with over 51,777 village-level testing labs enhanced and more than 5,000 bulk milk coolers installed.”
Under the updated scheme, the government intends to set up 10,000 new Dairy Cooperative Societies and two Milk Producer Companies (MPCs).
“This initiative is anticipated to create an additional 3.2 lakh jobs, placing significant emphasis on aiding women, who represent 70 percent of the dairy workforce,” it added.
The program will also facilitate collaboration between India and Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to enhance dairy infrastructure across nine states, including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.
With this revision, the NPDD aims to usher in a new era of growth in the dairy sector, bolstering India’s journey towards White Revolution 2.0.
