Milk Situation in India Stable and well under control: Alka Upadhyaya

Pashu Sandesh, 25 April 2025

In a high-level milk situation review meeting held at the Civil Services Officers’ Institute (CSOI) in New Delhi on 22 April 2025, the Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), Ms. Alka Upadhyaya, declared the national milk situation to be “stable and well under control.” She emphasised that it's time to focus on quality control and rural empowerment.

The session was chaired by Ms. Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary, DAHD, and attended by Ms. Varsha Joshi, Additional Secretary, along with senior officials from DAHD, the National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India (NCDFI), and State Cooperative Dairy Federations.

The review included detailed discussions on milk production trends, procurement strategies, and future action plans. Officials attributed the current stability to timely policy interventions and strengthened procurement operations by dairy cooperatives, which have ensured that farmers continue to receive fair and remunerative prices.

Addressing the gathering, Secretary Upadhyaya emphasised the urgent need to improve the quality control mechanisms in the dairy sector to combat the growing concern of milk adulteration. She called for intensive nationwide awareness campaigns to educate both consumers and stakeholders about the health hazards of adulterated milk and dairy products.

Looking forward, the Secretary urged all stakeholders and State Dairy Federations to enhance cooperative memberships and establish new village-level dairy societies under the Government’s White Revolution 2.0 initiative. These grassroots cooperatives are expected to contribute to rural livelihoods and increase overall milk production significantly.

A key highlight of the meeting was the presentation on the newly introduced Heifer Rearing Centre (HRC), a flagship initiative under the revised Rashtriya Gokul Mission. The scheme envisions the establishment of 30 high-standard farms, each housing up to 500 disease-free, high-genetic merit heifers conceived through IVF and ET (Embryo Transfer) technologies. Farmers will have the option to purchase these pregnant heifers, boosting productivity and breed quality.

Additionally, NDDB announced a supplementary financing plan. Besides the existing 35% subsidy under RGM, milk unions and federations will be eligible for low-interest loans to set up HRC facilities. Farmers purchasing IVF-born heifers will benefit from a 3% interest subvention on such loans.

The meeting concluded with a call to action for all stakeholders to collectively work towards a resilient, quality-driven, and farmer-friendly dairy ecosystem.