Jagan launches Amul project in Anantapur, hails its help to women, farmers

Vijayawada: Chief Minister Jaganmohan Reddy on Friday launched the ‘AP-Amul Project’ under the Jagananna Pala Velluva banner in the Anantapur district. The launch was done in virtual mode from his camp office here.

The chief minister said Amul has entered the Anantapur district to collect milk from small and medium-scale producers and wished that this would benefit women and farmers who rear cattle.

Jagan noted that the Gujarat-based Amul dairy cooperative society occupied the eighth position in the world and the first position in the country in milk procurement and processing. “Women who supply milk are the owners of Amul,” he noted.

The CM said Amul was offering higher rates than what are being offered by private dairies for milk and added that Amul was having long years of experience in the purchase and processing of milk.

What’s special about Amul, Jagan said, is that there are no issues of fraud, adulteration and it has no role for middlemen. Also, it is offering a bonus to women members of the society every six months from its margin of profit, Jagan noted.

“Amul is already collecting milk in six districts -- Prakasam, Chittoor, Kadapa, Guntur, West Godavari and Krishna -- and Anantapur has now become the seventh district where Amul has stepped in in AP,” he said.

Recollecting his interaction with the state’s women during his famous Padayatra, the CM said they had complained to him they were getting lesser for a litre of milk than what a one-litre bottle of water cost.

“Now, with the entry of Amul, other dairies have enhanced their purchasing price by five to 20 rupees per litre. This is benefitting the women,” the chief minister said.

The CM lauded Amul for setting up bulk milk-cooling centres at places where it was collecting milk in the state. Accordingly, nearly 4,900 bulk milk-cooling centres and 11,690 automatic milk collection units were being set up in AP. The daily unit would measure the quantum of milk supplied to it by milk producers, and offer a receipt on how much the rate it offered and do the quality check in a transparent manner.

He said the state government is initiating steps to avoid fraud in milk collection. Nearly 20 cases were booked wherein the private dairies offered rates with a variation ranging from 45 paise to Rs 10.95 per litre of milk to the farmers.

Minister for animal husbandry Seediri Appalaraju said that out of 400 lakh litres of milk being collected in the state a day, nearly 200 lakh litres were being consumed by households. Only 26 per cent of the remaining 200 lakh litres was going to the organised sector. The remaining quantum of milk was being supplied to the unorganised sector where middlemen were duping the farmers, he said.