CM Yadav pushes dairy drive as MP govt eyes ‘milk capital’ status

Bhopal, Aug 18 (IANS) Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday directed officials to accelerate efforts to increase milk production and improve the incomes of livestock farmers as Madhya Pradesh steps up its drive to become the country’s “milk capital”.

“Milk production should increase continuously, and the benefits of the dairy sector must reach animal herders. We have to move faster towards the goal of making Madhya Pradesh the milk capital,” Yadav said in a statement after chairing a meeting of the State-Level Steering Committee.

The Chief Minister reviewed the progress of the state’s dairy sector and directed officials to speed up activities under the government’s dairy development programme. The review assumes significance as daily milk collection in the state has risen by about 27 per cent in the past two years.

According to officials, daily milk collection increased from 8.73 lakh kg in 2024–25 to 9.66 lakh kg in 2025–26 and further to 9.75 lakh kg per day by July of 2026–27. The amount paid to milk producers also rose from Rs 1,477 crore in 2024–25 to Rs 1,780 crore in 2025–26, up more than 27 per cent.

Yadav shared that around 2,000 new milk cooperative societies have been formed in the state over the past two years. Of these, 1,926 societies are currently operational, while 801 inactive societies have been revived.

The state has set a target of establishing another 3,827 milk cooperative societies by 2028–29. It also aims to establish primary dairy cooperative societies in at least 50 per cent of villages across the state over the next five years.

He directed officials to increase milk collection further and strengthen monitoring of field-level marketing activities through information technology. He also called for digitisation of the entire dairy value chain.

“The entire dairy value chain should become technology-driven and transparent, from milk collection to processing and marketing. This will improve efficiency and also increase the income of livestock farmers,” Yadav said.

The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which took over the Madhya Pradesh State Cooperative Dairy Federation (MPCDF), has provided interest-free loans of Rs 4.70 crore to the Gwalior Milk Union and Rs 5 crore to the Jabalpur Milk Union for milk collection and processing, according to the statement.

–IANS

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