MP govt nod to hand over ops of state cooperative dairies to NDDB for 5 yrs

CM Yadav says MoU with NDDB to boost milk procurement prices in 11,000 villages across the state

The Madhya Pradesh government has given its nod to hand over the operations of State Cooperative Dairy Federation and the milk unions affiliated to it to the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) for the next five years, a move which the opposition Congress said was akin to giving Gujarat’s Amul a “backdoor” entry to take over MP’s state-run milk brand Sanchi.

It also comes over a year after a big row was triggered in Karnataka over the alleged takeover of the state’s iconic milk brand ‘Nandini’ by Amul.

The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday in Bhopal. Madhya Pradesh State Cooperative Dairy Federation markets its products under the ‘Sanchi’ brand.

“During the meeting, it was agreed that the Madhya Pradesh State Cooperative Dairy Federation and its associated milk unions will be managed and operated by the NDDB for the next five years. For this, necessary approvals will be obtained and legal action will be taken,” an official release said.

CM Yadav said that there is a consensus on giving responsibility to the NDDB to increase the income of farmers and cattle keepers by making the state a leader in milk production.

If required, necessary amendments will also be made in the Cooperative Act for this purpose, he said.

“The MOU between NDDB and the state government will enable milk farmers in around 11,000 villages across MP to get better prices for their produce which will bring economic prosperity for them,” Yadav told reporters in the national capital on Wednesday.

Multi-purpose cooperative societies will be set up in all the 11,000 villages, he added.

In recent times, too, reports show that NDDB had taken over the functioning of some other state cooperatives namely Mahananda Cooperative Dairy in Maharashtra and Sreeja Cooperative Dairy in Uttar Pradesh.

Madhya Pradesh stood at the third spot in the country as it produces nine to 10 per cent of the country’s total milk production.

After Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh is leading in milk production at present, Yadav added.

Five and a half crore litres of milk is being produced in the state every day. In terms of the availability of milk per person, Madhya Pradesh's position is better than the national average, he said.

“While the availability of milk per person in the country is 459 grams per day, in Madhya Pradesh it is 644 grams,” the CM said, adding that the target was to double the state’s milk production in the next five years.

Meanwhile, Congress’ Rajya Sabha member Vivek Tankha questioned the state government’s decision and termed it a takeover by Amul through backdoor.

In a post on X on Wednesday morning, Tankha wrote, “Sanchi, the trusted milk products brand of MP, is being taken over by Gujarat’s famous brand Amul through the backdoor. This attempt was also made with Karnataka’s Nandini (milk brand). The MP government may kneel, but the 7.5 crore people of MP, for whom Sanchi is a household brand, will protest.”

Taking control
 

> MP State Cooperative Dairy Federation markets its products under ‘Sanchi’ brand

> The state government says the move will enable milk farmers in around 11,000 villages across MP get better prices for their produce 

> Recently, NDDB took over functioning of some other state cooperatives like Mahananda Cooperative Dairy in Maharashtra and Sreeja Cooperative Dairy in Uttar Pradesh