GCMMF row puts 27 lakh milk pourers' bonus in lurch

The ongoing crisis in Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) seems to have taken its toll on milk pourers mainly consisting of farmers, who are associated with the different member unions of the Rs 8000 crore federation.

The raging controversy over the chairmanship of GCMMF has resulted into a delay in disbursal of bonus to milk pourers, who are paid the amount of bonus after the federation clears its annual accounts in its board meeting. The federation has around 27 lakh milk pourers with it.

Each member union has its share in the total business done by the federation throughout the year. The members unions get their share from the federation after the board of directors clears the annual accounts of the organisation.

In the past couple of months, the federation has failed twice to convene a board meeting to clear its accounts due to non-quorum as chairmen of some of the member unions have been demanding that Parthi Bhatol should step down from the post of chairman of GCMMF.

"In order to disburse the bonus to member unions, which in turn distribute it among the farmers, the federation needs to hold a board meeting to clear annual accounts. But this has not happened so far this year. As a result, the bonus distribution has delayed," said Ramsinh Parmar, chairman, Kheda District Co-operative Milk Producers Union Ltd (KDCMPUL), popularly known as Amul Dairy.

It may be mentioned here that the date for the board meeting is yet to be fixed and there is no assurance that the next board meeting would not meet the same fate as that of earlier two meeting which were boycotted by some of the board members. In this backdrop, the village level milk purers will have to wait till the board meeting takes place.

The next board meeting of GCMMF is going to be a stormy affair as the acceptance of BM Vyas' resigantion from the post of its managing director by the federation's chairman Parthi Bhatol seems to have irked some of the board members, who are of the view that his (BM Vyas) resignation should have been approved in the board meeting by all the members and not by Bhatol alone.