The Greater Ganjam Gajapati Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union in Berhampur. Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, Feb. 8: The city faces a daily shortage of 50,000 litres of milk, while the entire milk production of Ganjam district is around 7,000 litres.

Kishore Chandra Panda, president of the Ganjam Milk Producers’ Societies, said the milk production, which had been 10,000 litres a day in Ganjam district during 2004, decreased to 7,000 litres in the wake of cyclone Phailin.

Consequently, milk produced in Andhra Pradesh with brand names such as Heritage and Bisakha is flooding the market here.

“We are in a great crisis. If the situation continues this way, many dairy farms will shut down. Though dairy farming has been given the agricultural status, the state government is not patronising it. No steps have been taken by the government to provide training and cattle feed to the milk producers at subsidised rates. While agriculturists are being provided free electricity, the dairy farms are being charged for electricity at commercial rates. We are also purchasing cattle feed with high rates,” Panda said.

The Greater Ganjam Gajapati Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union collects milk from dairy farmers through 192 registered Milk Producers’ Societies. However, it sells milk to the Odisha Milk Federation at a margin of only Rs 1 per litre, despite cost of transportation, salary for the staff members and other expenditures. The union’s general manager P.G. Dora said: “It is very difficult to manage the system with a margin of only Rs 1 per litre.”

Prior to 2005, the Greater Ganjam Gajapati Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union was entrusted with collection, price fixation and marketing of milk in Ganjam and Gajapati districts. But since 2005, it has only been collecting milk, while the Odisha Milk Federation is empowered with price fixation and marketing of milk.

The federation is purchasing the milk from the union at the price of Rs 21.50 to Rs 24 per litre and selling it at Rs 28. “The rate structure has definitely favoured the federation. But the farmers, Milk Producers’ Societies and the union are the real losers,” Panda said.