NATIONAL DAIRY PLAN- GOVERNMENT SCHEME FOR MEETING MILK DEMAND

National Dairy Plan technology to producer

The Government has approved the National Dairy Development Board's ambitious National Dairy Plan for the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) starting this year. The government will launch this countrywide plan with an outlay of Rs 1,760 crore. International development Association will provide Rs 1,584 crore towards the project and the rest Rs 176 crore will come from the Union government.

The cabinet panel has given its clearance to the long-awaited project for the span of 12^th and 13^th plan. The programme has already been approved by the Planning Commission. NDP will be implemented in almost all districts and the quantum of funds will be allocated based on the current situation (high or low potential) of dairying in the district, says a Working Group headed by Dr VK Taneja, Vice-Chancellor of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary & Animal Science University, Ludhiana. The report will form basis of structuring of Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries in the 12th Plan.

Besides increasing production and productivity of milk and allied products, the programme will aim at bringing 65 per cent surplus milk produced under the ambit of organized sector as against the present 30 per cent. The Group has proposed to develop new business models to bring the unorganized sector into the organized sector by utilizing existing legal provisions like Company’s Act (producer companies) and Societies Act (producer associations).
India was the largest milk producing nation in 2010-11 with a production of 122.8 million tonne. This was close to 17% of world milk production. Milk production in the country is growing at 3.3% per annum while consumption is growing at 5% leaving a gap in demand and supply. We need to plug that gap to steady the domestic supply and milk prices.

The project aims at boosting milk production using scientific breeding and feeding programmes covering about 2.7 million milch animals in 40,000 villages. It will also focus on modernising village-level infrastructure for milk collection and bulking such as milk cans, bulk milk coolers for a cluster of villages, associated weighing and testing equipment and related IT equipment. NDDB says the demand for milk is likely to be about 150 million tonne by 2016-17 and 200-210 million tonne by 2021-22.

It is estimated that the capacity created by the private sector in the last 15 years equals that set up by cooperatives in over 30 years. In the changing scenario, cooperatives currently procure about 16% of the national marketable milk surplus covering around 21% of the country's villages and 18% of rural milk producing households. It is desirable that the cooperative sector achieves a procurement share of at least 20% of the marketable milk surplus by 2016-17 so as to retain an overall 50% share of the marketable surplus handled by the organised sector  an NDDB report on National Dairy Plan says. The project took five years to get the clearance.

By the end of 12th Plan, demand for milk is expected to increase to 141 million tonnes. To meet this demand, the sector should grow between 5-6 per cent. While milk production has grown at about 3.5 per cent annually in the recent past, milk consumption has been growing at about 5 per cent per annum, leading to frequent price rise.

The Group says that besides demand and supply gap, milk prices are also rising because of high fodder prices. The deficit of dry fodder, concentrates and green fodder currently is 10, 33 and 35 per cent, respectively. For this, the Department must initiate a major feed and fodder mission.

It also proposes that dedicated Krishi Vigyan Kendras exclusively for livestock should be established for training and demonstration.

The report notes certain financial measures too like to promote dairying, the share of animal husbandry in agricultural credit should be increased at least to 10 per cent from nearly 4 per cent now, and interest rate on animal husbandry credit should be at par with crop loan (at 4 per cent interest rates). The facility of the Kisan credit cards should also be extended to all livestock farmers. A minimum of 35-40 per cent of the allocation under the flagship scheme of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna must be earmarked for animal husbandry and dairy sector.The Group has proposed a budgetary outlay of Rs 31,560 crore for the Department to achieve growth rate of 6 per cent.

The National Dairy Plan (NDP) aims to take technology to producers for feeding animals adequately so that benefit of higher genetic progress actually results in enhanced milk production.

The Dairy plan aims at contributing to increasing milk production by increasing milch animal productivity in existing herds through a focused and systematic process for breeding and feeding, a Dairy Development Board release said today.

India, the world's largest milk producer, is presently producing 112 million tonnes of milk annually and the projected demand of milk is 180 million tonnes by 2021-22.

The NDDB focused efforts in quality breeding and nutrition services enabling milk producers to improve the productivity of their animals were detailed in a presentation given to the minister.

The minister was explained about NDDB''s ration balancing advisory services for improving the net daily income of milk producers through increase in daily income of milk producers through increase in daily milk/fat yield and reduction in the cost of feeding, the release said.