Radha Mohan Singh said India is the largest milk producer and the country’s milk production grew at an annual rate of 6% during 2014-17. “Income of dairy farmers has increased by 23.77% during 2014-17 compared to 2011-14,” Singh said. Stating that milk demand is rising in the country, the minister emphasised on value addition in the dairy sector to boost farmers’ income. The plan would not only focus on meeting the demand of milk and milk products but also help in achieving the objective of doubling the farmers’ income. Terming the dairy sector as economic backbone of rural India, he said there is a need to boost livestock productivity for raising farmers’ income and conserve indigenous bovine breeds.

Source: Mint November 26, 2017 12:11 UTC