Dairy farmers in Haryana have intensified pressure on Vita for higher milk procurement prices, with the Dairy Farmers Association (DFA) submitting memoranda at various Vita dairy plants and demanding an increase of ₹2–₹3 per kg in the milk procurement price. Farmers have cited sharp increases in the cost of cattle feed, fodder and transportation, saying that rising dairy-animal maintenance costs have eroded their earnings and pushed many livestock owners into losses.
Alongside the demand for higher procurement prices, a separate village-level campaign has emerged across parts of Haryana, with dairy farmers collectively deciding to raise prices for milk sold directly to consumers. The campaign began in Rajthal village of Narnaund, where farmers decided on a selling price of ₹100/kg for buffalo milk and ₹80/kg for cow milk, while also proposing to raise the price of desi ghee to ₹1,500–₹2,000 per litre.
The movement has spread to Rajthal, Bhaini Amipur and Mirchpur in Narnaund, where farmers have demanded a ₹20–₹30 per kg increase. They have announced that buffalo milk will be sold at ₹100/kg and cow milk at ₹80/kg from September 4, while the price of desi ghee will also be increased by ₹500.
In Dhanauri village of Kaithal, farmers have decided to sell milk at ₹100/kg from September 1, citing higher prices of khal and binola, which have significantly increased dairy-farming costs. Similarly, farmers in Sirsa Kheri village of Julana tehsil in Jind have announced a ₹100/kg milk price from September 1 and agreed to impose a ₹5,100 penalty on any dairy farmer selling milk below the collectively fixed rate.
Farmers currently state that buffalo milk generally sells for ₹70–₹80/kg in Haryana, while cow milk is sold at around ₹50–₹60/kg. The proposed village-level prices therefore represent a substantial increase over prevailing rates.
Meanwhile, farmers in Pehowa, Kurukshetra, have held a meeting at the rest house and called a mahapanchayat for September 10 to discuss the milk-price issue and determine their future course of action. Farmers maintain that rising input costs have made dairy farming increasingly difficult to sustain at existing milk prices.
Source: Dairynews7x7 31 Aug, 2023 Read full story here
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