Milk-producing farmers in the state are now receiving an average benefit of Rs 34.18 crore per month — ”the highest ever — ”as the state milk federation procures approximately 2.70 lakh litres of milk per day from the farmers.
This is a significant increase compared to the average procurement of 1.57 lakh litres per day during the financial year 2024-25, a government spokesperson said in a statement here on Saturday.
The federation is ensuring doorstep milk collection, particularly benefiting marginal milk producers living in remote areas of the state.
This initiative is helping improve their socio-economic conditions by providing them with direct financial support.
He said that the government has consistently increased milk procurement prices over the last three years. In the 2026-27 budget, provision has been made to procure cow milk at Rs 61 per litre and buffalo milk at Rs 71 per litre.
Reforms made in the dairy sector have encouraged more people to participate in village dairy societies, which have risen from 27,498 to 39,790 in the last three years, while the number of functional dairy cooperative societies has increased from 583 to 758.
The government is promoting milk producer groups and women self-help groups. These initiatives are not only increasing milk production but also creating sustainable livelihood opportunities in rural areas, the statement said.
Currently, 11 milk processing plants are operational with a combined capacity of 1.80 lakh litres per day. In addition, a modern milk processing plant is being set up at Dhagwar in Kangra district with an initial capacity of 1.50 lakh litres per day, which can be expanded to three lakh litres per day in the future, which represents the government’s long-term vision.
To strengthen institutional capacity, the government has signed an agreement with the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to establish a new milk union in Kangra district. This will cover Kangra, Una, Hamirpur, and Chamba districts and will improve milk collection, processing and marketing systems.
More than 2,000 farmers have been trained over the past three years in clean milk production and quality maintenance. Additionally, to ensure transparency and fair pricing, 222 Automatic Milk Collection Units (AMCUs) and 32 Data Processing Milk Collection Units (DPMCs) have been installed.
Ensuring that farmers receive money directly in their hands is a key priority of the state government and efforts are afoot to support farmers and horticulturists so they can become economically empowered, said Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
“Our clear objective is to position villages, farmers, women, and rural youth at the heart of the state’s economic growth”, he said, the statement added.
PTI
