Ranchi, July 5: Over 5,000 dairy farmers will earn their first extra lump sum tomorrow from Jharkhand State Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation Ltd, managed by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), a move to encourage the business and move towards milk-sufficiency.
Chief minister Raghubar Das will hand over cheques and gifts related to dairy production to some 32 farmers in the presence of NDDB chairman T. Nandkumar and other dignitaries in Hotwar.
The rest will get money directly credited to bank accounts.
Farmers stand to get additional income between Rs 600 and Rs 34,000.
"We are giving this money to farmers from the total profit made in one fiscal year. It is their money at the end of the day," said B.S. Khanna, MD of state milk federation.
Last year, Jharkhand got included in Centre's National Dairy Development (NDD) plan phase 1, which aims to enhance milk productivity for consumption and export.
Introduced in 2011-12 for six years in 15 states, NDD phase 1 has now been extended to 2018-19 with Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand added to the list.
Khanna said currently they were collecting milk from 10 districts in the state, with over 5,000 farmers linked with them.
An NDDB official added that at all the places, the entire milk business is run by dairy farmers.
"We only help them out. Hence, whatever money is earned through the sale of milk and milk products are given back to farmers. This is the practice we adopt, including Anand (Amul)."
NDDB's experience after its comeback in Jharkhand in 2014 has been satisfactory, its chairman Nandkumar told The Telegraph two days ago.
"The present dispensation under chief secretary Rajiv Gauba is very cooperative. Now that we spent a year successfully, we will start expanding. We're perhaps a bit slow as we lack a hi-tech processing plant. But, by December-end, Hotwar will have a one-lakh metric tonne capacity dairy. We'll get aggressive then," Nandkumar said.
However, the board chairman also pointed out that mass vacancies in veterinary posts was, as of now, a big worry for the health of cattle in Jharkhand.
