New Delhi: To give impetus to the rural economy, the second white revolution in the country is going to start from one lakh villages. 56 thousand 586 new dairy cooperative societies and milk pooling points are to be established in five years. This will cover villages where dairy societies have not been formed yet. Under the second white revolution, which started after a gap of about five and a half decades, focus is being laid on animal husbandry, milk production, storage and export.

Currently, dairy cooperatives are active in more than 1.59 lakh villages of the country, through which an average of 590 lakh liters of milk is being procured every day. In the next five years, this has to be increased by 50 percent to about one thousand lakh liters. Currently, milk collection in the country is increasing at the rate of about six percent per year. This has to be increased to nine percent.

The 46 thousand dairy committees already functioning at the village level are also to be enriched. High level milk collection units, bulk milk coolers, data processors and testing equipment etc. are to be installed in those villages. This will help in expanding the network of primary dairy cooperatives. Participation of women will increase. If the market reaches the homes of small cowherds, they will also be able to get profitable prices.

Preparations to organize the dairy sector

If milk production in the country increases, domestic demand will be met and export capacity will also increase. A survey conducted by NDDB has revealed that milk is still dominated by the unorganized sector. This creates problems in quality control, but when milk will be collected in large quantities from villages through cooperatives, the organized dairy industry will get a huge boost, after which consumers will also be able to get pure milk.

National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has been given the responsibility of preparing the scheme. Under this, easy loans and all other facilities will be arranged at village and panchayat level. Work on the pilot project has also been started. One thousand multi-purpose primary credit societies (M-PACS) will be given a grant of Rs. 40,000 each by NDDB for the infrastructure of dairy development. If the experiment is successful, all dairy cooperative societies will be brought under its purview.