Udupi Dairy farmers to launch postcard campaign seeking hike in milk price

Dairy farmers attached to Sahakara Bharathi, a NGO of cooperatives, will launch a postcard campaign by holding a convention of farmers in Udupi on October 27 to urge the State government to hike the milk procurement price by ₹5 a litre.

According to the convener (dairy farmers’ cell) of Sahakara Bharathi Sanoor Narasimha Kamath, the convention will be held at the Rajangana of Sri Krishna Mutt.

He said the cost of milk production has increased manifold due to a hike in the price of cattle feed. Though the dairy farmers have been urging the government to increase the milk procurement price, the government has not responded positively.

Mr. Kamath said that dairy farmers in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts who supply milk to the Dakshina Kannada Cooperative Milk Union Ltd. through 734 milk producers’ cooperative societies on a daily basis are now being paid ₹35 per litre. “The farmers should get ₹40 a litre to overcome the production cost,” he said.

Initially, 1,000 dairy farmers of Udupi district will write their demand in postcards and seek the intervention of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. The campaign will be extended to other parts of the State later. The Sahakara Bharathi members in their respective districts will submit memoranda in this regard to the Deputy Commissioners and the district in-charge Ministers, he said.

Later, 5,000 dairy farmers from each district will participate in the campaign by posting postcards to press for the demand, he said.