Milk shortage was created and no crisis anywhere: Parshottam Rupala

Animal husbandry, fisheries and dairying minister Parshottam Rupala on Tuesday said that reports of milk shortage was a created thing while the ground reality is that there is no shortage of milk or milk products anywhere in the country.

Briefing the media on the Modi government’s achievements during the last nine years, Rupala said the sector is likely to grow at 7 per cent in 2023-24 against over 6 per cent in 2022-23.

“I will definitely admit that there has been an increase in milk prices. The government is trying its best to address the problem by increasing milk production and availability,” he said.

Leading milk suppliers like Amul and Mother Dairy have hiked prices of milk multiple times in the last one year, citing increasing procurement costs from farmers.

For instance, Mother Dairy has increased milk prices by Rs 10 per litre between March and December 2022.

“Our total milk collection is not more than 35 per cent. This means, there are still a lot of supplies in our own country, which we have not tapped. We are making efforts to tap it. We will tap this and boost supply,” he added.

Asked if imports are required in the coming months, Rupala said, “For consumers, there is no need to worry about the shortage of milk and milk products.”

The minister, however, did not give a timeline for any reduction in milk prices.

Milk production in India, the world’s largest producer, rose by 83 million tonnes to 221 million tonnes in the last nine years.

Per capita consumption has also increased to 449 grams in 2022 from 303 grams in 2014, he added.

On the sector’s growth, the minister said the animal, fisheries and dairying sector is growing at a fast pace. It is expected to grow at 7 per cent in 2023-24.