Milk-based sweets are now selling between Rs 250 and Rs 280 a kilo. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, Aug. 20: Orissa is facing a milk crisis and the shortage is being pegged at 38 lakh litres a day.

The state requires 84 lakh litres of milk each day, but its production is just about 46 lakh litres.

The crisis has not only sent milk prices spiralling with a litre now selling for Rs 22, it has also had a cascading effect on the market of milk products. Milk-based sweets are selling for anything between Rs 250 to Rs 280 a kilo.

Local sweet-stall owner Ashok Mohanty said: “Because of the short supply of milk, it has become difficult to provide sweets to customers at a cheaper rate. Similarly, tea, which was earlier available at Rs 2 a cup has now touched Rs 4 a cup.”

Fisheries and animal resources development minister Ramesh Majhi said: “All possible steps have been taken to enhance milk production in the state. A total of 4,923 milk cooperative societies have already been set up across the state and 2,55,205 milkmen have been enrolled as their members.”

Majhi said to produce good quality cows, a calf rearing programme and artificial insemination under the National Project on Cattle and Buffalo (NPCB) have been taken up in the state.

The dairy development programme is now in operation in 10 districts — Angul, Bargarh, Balangir, Nuapda, Sambalpur, Sonepur, Kalahandi, Boudh, Nawarangpur and Koraput.

Officials said in these districts, each dairy centre would cover 10-12 villages, with 1,500-2,000 cows and buffaloes that were able to breed, with the help of trained officials. The state aims to produce 5 lakh metric tonne of milk by 2020.

An insurance programme for cows has been taken up in nine districts of the Orissa. The minister added that with the help of the Orissa State Cooperative Milk Producers Federation Limited, intensive dairy development programme and clean milk production programme had been taken up.