With separate ministry for dairy sought sector likely to see opportunities

Source: FNB News

The Dr Kurien-led white revolution might have won India's dairy industry a top-ranker's ticket on the global dairy bandwagon, leading to an incredible jump in milk production - 112 million tonnes last year, however, the success and statistics certainly did not satiate India's need for self sufficiency in production and supply of this essential white pearl.

There is a room, a giant one indeed, to tap the myriad opportunities which lay in the dairy sector, given the apparent high potential of the industry in the wake of growing global demand.

In this backdrop, food minister KV Thomas' suggestion to give dairy a separate ministry could be a subtle warning to the government that the sector needs attention, certainly more than what it gets today.

To reiterate his concern, the minister has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to create a separate ministry for animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries. He emphasised that the three sectors had plenty of scope to draw greater revenues.

Thomas pointed that with dairy and animal husbandry department befalling under the ministry of agriculture, it did not achieve the anticipated development, as agriculture and the intricacies involved in it took away a major share of the government's attention.

In his letter, Thomas highlighted that animal husbandry's output was over 30 per cent to the country's agricultural sector. The contribution of livestock and fisheries to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had been over 6 per cent, adding that India was also bestowed with high population of livestock in the world apart from being the largest producer of milk.

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