Dairy Farming In West Bengal, Loans, Subsidy, Schemes

Introduction of Dairy farming in West Bengal:

Today, we will be discussing Dairy Farming in West Bengal, Subsidies, Loans, and other Schemes.

Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for the long-term production of milk, which is processed for the ultimate sale of a dairy products. Dairy farming can be a superb opportunity for the self-employment of unemployed youth. It is a good source of income generation for small or marginal farmers and agricultural laborers. One of the largest milk producers in the world is India. And the demand for milk & milk products is rising rapidly. So, there is a huge scope of dairy farming in India. The increasing cost of feed ingredients and its seasonal changeability can balance by undertaking fodder cultivation.

Dairy farming has been an age-old business in India accepted down from generation to generation. The involvement made by Amul in the form of the ‘White Revolution’ played a key role in transforming the dairy industry in India from its stagnation level to a world leader. The dairy farming business in India is an ‘all season’ big business. Efficient management of a dairy farm is the solution for achieving. In India, cow and buffalo farming are the backbone of the dairy farming industry.

Advantages of Dairy farming:

• The advantage is you do not need enough rainfalls to continue Dairy farming. Hottest days in summer, when you practice the highest humidity, can even be helpful for the rearing of cattle in your Dairy farm.
• The initial investment is very low in comparison to other industries.
• Demand for milk and milk product is increasing due to the rise in per capita income.
• Milk, as a product, has got the command from vegetarian and non-vegetarian.
• The animals can be insured as a part of risk management.
• Animals can be shifted to a new location in case of natural disasters floods and cyclones.

  

Dairy development in West Bengal:

West Bengal is the 13th largest state in terms of area but fourth largest in terms of population in India. The Directorate of Dairy Development, below the aegis of Animal Resources Development Department, Govt. Of West Bengal was mainly engaged in ensuring the availability of wholesome liquid milk to the people of West Bengal in various ways – enforcing the related statutory norms from time to time, regulating the flow of milk to sweetmeat shops, recombining of Skimmed Milk Powder and Butter Oil to gather the liquid milk demand, etc.

The Urban Milk Supply Schemes in the Public Sector came up with 2 broad objectives-

1. i) To supply marketing facilities to the rural producers of milk for disposing of their marketable surplus and
2. ii) To give pasteurized milk to the urban population at a reasonable price.

Read this: Biodynamic Farming Principles.

Scope and importance of Dairy farming in West Bengal:

West Bengal is an Indian state, placed in Eastern India on the Bay of Bengal. With over 91 million inhabitants (as of 2011), it is India’s 4^th most populous state. Haringhata is a statutory town in the Kalyani subdivision of Nadia district in the Indian state of West Bengal. With these wide objectives, a dairy plant was installed at Haringhata and the same started functioning in June 1950. A scheme for the building of milk colonies for colonization of cattle was also introduced in the year 1954 and the first set of milk colonies was ready for occupation by cattle in the year 1957. The 2nd dairy plant was set up at Belgachia, Calcutta, in the year 1962. A network of Chilling Stations has been gradually built up since 1952.

When the 1st dairy plant was set up at Haringhata in 1950-’51, it started with the production of 1.5 thousand liters of bottled milk per day, whereas with the network of two dairy plants, 7 milk colony units, and 19 Milk Collection-cum-Chilling stations named as “Greater Calcutta Milk Supply Scheme” the production had gradually gone up to 210 thousand liters per day by 1980s. Besides the production of liquid milk, the GCMSS used to make ghee as and when the surplus butterfat was available. GCMSS used to obtain raw milk from the districts of 24-Parganas, Nadia, Murshidabad, Burdwan, and Hooghly. The Govt. Cattle farms at Kalyani-Haringhata compound contributed a substantial portion of this milk supply.

In order to raise the handling capacities of the milk of the dairy plant at Belgachia (Central Dairy), a program was undertaken for raising the level of production up to 3 lakh liters of processed milk production a day in a phased manner, of 5000 liters per day increase every month, so that the total installed capacities of two dairies, i.e. Central and Haringhata Dairy taken to together reach 3.5 lakh liters per day (3 lakh liters at Central Dairy and 50,000 liters at Haringhata Dairy). The milk was made to bring the consumers through 612 milk depots on the basis of milk cards. With the implementation of the Operation Flood Programme in West Bengal in the mid-1970s, the additional activities, procurement of milk, and other farmer-related activities on Dairy Development have been regularly taken over by the Co-operative Sector, i.e., West Bengal Co-operative Milk Producers’ Federation Limited (WBCMPFL).

The dairies of the Dairy Directorate, from then on, purchase raw milk from WBCMPFL to bring processed milk to hospitals, institutions, and its esteemed customers including children, expectant mothers, and elderly persons.

Milk production in West Bengal:

Dairying is important and integral to the rural economy of West Bengal. Milk production in the state was expected at 13,804 TKgPD (5.04 Million MT) in 2015-16 which is about 3.2 percent of the total milk production of the country. Milk production in the state developed at a CAGR of 2.42 percent during the last 5 years. Paschim Medinipur is the highest milk-producing district in the state by Bardhaman. It is evident that almost half of the entire milk production of West Bengal is concentrated in six districts, namely, Paschim Medinipur, Bardhaman, Murshidabad, Bankura, Nadia, and Hooghly. Out of the entire annual milk production of about 5.04 million tonnes in West Bengal during 2015-16, about 35 percent is retained by the milk producers for home consumption.

West Bengal consumes nearly 3 million liters of milk daily and the industry is growing at 3-4 percent a year. “Of this, only 1 million liters per day is processed, and the state’s per capita consumption is also low at 126 grams as against a national average of 230 grams. So, we see huge potential for expansion,” added Bagla. There is good news for the Bengal dairy farmers. The state government has decided to give an additional subsidy of Rs 2 per liter to dairy farmers who sell milk to the government during cooperatives.

At present, the procurement price of milk is 25 rupees per liter. While this remains the same, the additional subsidy amount will be transferred straight to the bank accounts of the dairy farmers. At present, there are 1.2 lakh dairy farmers under the West Bengal Co-operative Milk manufacturer Association. Additionally, ten lakh people indirectly going to benefit, if family members are taken into account. This move will affect an additional expenditure of about Rs 6.5 crore to the government. The amount has been released by the state finance department. This extra income will bring a lot of relief to the farmer families who sell milk to the state government. They are distributed across fourteen milk federations. The Animal Resources Development Department oversees this action.

Dairy farming requirements:

Dairy sheds construction:

The Dairy sheds must have a floor space of 10 feet by 5.5 feet per animal with a 1.5% slope towards the drain. The floor must be through of rough concrete material. The sheds must be at least ten feet high. They may be constructed by using bricks, RCC, or can be fetched. Only the western side of the shed must be walled while the other 3 sides must be left open. However, the open sides must be enclosed with a gunny cloth during winter to protect the animals from cold. There should also be a provision for sprinkling water on the animals every half an hour during the summer. This reduces heat stress to a huge extent. The eastern side of the shed is released outdoors for free-roaming space. The roaming area is enclosed with trees providing shade.

Feed management:

Dairy farming provides the main source of income to farmers and dairy entrepreneurs. Traditionally Dairy farming has been an important means of generating supplemental income and service for Agriculture, farming communities, particularly those pertaining to the small and marginal categories. But in the recent past Dairy farming as a viable, profitable enterprise has become increasingly popular among the farming community, having an eye on maintaining high-yielding dairy animals and is organism looked upon as a potent means of diversification in agriculture. Besides producing milk and draft power, the dairy animals are also the best source of farmyard manure, which is a good quality source of organic matter for providing soil fertile.

The crop by-products in turn are usefully utilized for feeding the animals. Though the total milk production in the country as per current estimates have crossed 102 million tones/annum mark and is 15 percent of the world milk production yet and per capita accessibility of milk is still about  232 grams per day against the minimum requirement of 284 grams per day as recommended by ICMR. The regular productivity of our animals is still close to 1050 liters per annum, which is far below the world average of above 3000 liters milk and milk production account for 9.2 and 12.4 percent of protein intake in rural and urban areas, respectively, which is higher than the protein intake by non-vegetarians through animal products. The performance of the Indian dairy sector has been relatively impressive.

Read this: Cattle Feed Information Guide.

The cattle population in the state is mostly dominated by nondescript animals. Only one local breed, “Siri” cattle exists in the Darjeeling district. The total number of people for the graded “Siri” cattle was 5,479 during 2012 as per the Breed Survey 2013 of the Government of India. Though Gir and Sahiwal are not the local breeds of West Bengal, through the implementation of the new Breeding Policy during March 2007, is used for the up-gradation of non-descript cattle in the state. The Breed Survey also substantiates that the state has the 2nd highest population of Gir and Sahiwal, the highest being Gujarat for Gir and Uttar Pradesh for Sahiwal.

Types of cattle in West Bengal:

HF Crossbred, Jersey Crossbred, Gir, Sahiwal, Siri, and Murrah.

How to start a dairy farm in West Bengal:

The Dairy farm is dependent on the cow’s capability to live a healthy life, produce milk, and have calves that can become the next generation of the farm. Dairy farming requires thorough programs for herd health, reproduction, and calf care in addition to the nutrition and financial aspects of the farm. Functioning with your veterinarian, genetics representatives and extension agents can help you develop comprehensive farm plans to create a positive future.

The Indian central government last year launched a scheme through National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) with an intention to bring structural changes in the unorganized sector of Dairy farming. It also aims to set up modern Dairy farms and provided that employment opportunities for individuals. This time government has come up with extra financial assistance.

Farmers and individuals can take benefit from this scheme. This scheme provides opportunities for entrepreneurs interested in dairy farming.

• Decide which type of farm activity you will be established.
• Register your company.
• Make a detailed business plan for the dairy farm (include a bank loan demand too in the proposal and very much of your loan getting sanctioned depends upon this draft).
• Submit your request to any bank which is suitable for refinancing from NABARD.

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Loans for Dairy farming in West Bengal:

SBI is offering two bank loan schemes for Dairy related agricultural projects. The first one is -SBI Scheme For Dairy Societies- which provides finance for creating infrastructures like Construction of Milkhouse or Society office, Purchase of Automatic milk collection system, transport vehicles, Bulk chilling unit; and the second one is SBI Dairy Plus Agriculture loan scheme that provided financing for milk-producing societies recognized private milk dairies posting profits in the past two years.

SBI DAIRY PLUS AGRICULTURE LOAN SCHEME: gives loans from 50000 to 5 Lakhs.

SBI DAIRY SCHEME FOR Dairy Societies: LIMIT OF LOAN FOR DAIRY SOCIETIES: Milkhouse or society office Rs. 2 lakh, Automatic milk collection system Rs. 1 lakh, Milk transportation Rs. 3 lakh, Chilling Unit Rs. 4 lakhs.

Subsidies for Diary farming by West Bengal Government: 

Scheme for subsidy on interest for starting a Commercial Dairy farm with 1 to 20 milch animals.

• Dairy farming is an important basis of constant subsidiary income. The small and poor farmers can purchase one to 20 animals as per their need and capacity to maintain. If any bank accepted by Indian Reserve Bank sanction loan for any dairy animal cow and buffalo, the beneficiary can get an interest subsidy @ 12 percent interest on the bank loan amount. Dairy farming is a great unorganized sector in India and a major source of livelihood in rural areas. In an effort to take in structure in the dairy farming industry and provide assistance for setting up dairy farms, the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries launched the “Venture Capital system for Dairy” in 2005. The system provided for interest-free loans for setting up dairy units and as of 31st March 2010 nearly 15,268 dairy farms enjoyed interest-free loans to the tune of Rs.146.91 crores in India. Following the success of the Venture Capital Scheme for Dairy, the Government in 2010 decided to launch the Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme through NABARD.
• The establishment of small dairy units with crossbred cows/ indigenous descript milch cows, graded buffaloes up to ten animals.
• Investment: Rs 5.00 lakh for ten animal units – minimum unit size is two animals with an upper limit of 10 animals.
• Subsidy: 25% of the outlay (33.33 % of SC / ST farmers,) as back-ended capital subsidy subject to a ceiling of Rs 1.25 lakh for a unit of ten animals (Rs 1.67 lakh for SC/ST farmers,). The maximum acceptable capital subsidy is Rs 25000 (Rs 33,300 for SC/ST farmers) for two animal units. The subsidy shall be limited on a prorated basis depending on the unit size.

Disadvantages of Dairy farming:

• In India, Dairy farming is persistently exposed to risk from thieves. Smugglers frequently steal exclusive cows and buffaloes and interstate rackets send them to different places to be used as stock for beef. Theft of cattle has been a risk.
• The dairy farm business has a lot of employability, but so far this profession had remained confined to a particular caste. Initiatives from the government to give it incentives to youth to take it up as a profession are barely recognizable.
• In the Dairy business, the lives of cattle are vulnerable to hazards from diseases and epidemics. One epidemic is able to wipe away the entire livestock on a farm.
• It requires nonstop maintenance. You have to clean the Cow Sheds; you have to clean the Cows daily to keep a clean environment.

Read this: Kadaknath Farming Guide, Loan, Subsidy.

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