I would like to declare upfront that the idea behind the article is not to analyze the technicalities, especially the changes in the taxes, tariffs, etc. Rather the focus is narrowed down to the policy announcements only with very little focus on the financial allocations. In fact, the idea is to see through the eyes of a dairy farmer as to how the government policies will shape the sector in the coming decade. The sector has seen the maximum changes in the last one year, especially now that there is a dedicated ministry for animal husbandry (why wasn’t there one before) considering the large number of people impacted by it.

From having a separate ministry for Animal Husbandry and livestock, to having included Agriculture and allied activities in the Start-Up India programs, the government is definitely pinning a lot of hopes on this sector. The fact that the ministry has three dedicated ministers, which is the joint highest along with the Home Ministry, in itself an indicator of the priorities and the potential. By having a separate budget from the Agriculture Ministry, the newly carved ministry will now be able to focus better on its priorities. Though the sector cannot be called a sunrise sector, however the push and vigor that the government has showed in the past few years, it definitely has created a buzz in a sector which was so far playing second fiddle in the agriculture ministry. With increase in private and institutional investments and the growth of various incubation and accelerator programs designed especially for the animal husbandry and agriculture sector, the coming few years will see a plethora of young entrepreneurs making a name for themselves. Terms such as “Milk-tech”, “Milkonomics”, “Dairypreneurs”, and “Agripreneurs” are already being used extensively in the media space. When things such as “Make in Rural India” are being discussed on a global platform, it is impossible to not feel the changes that are taking place in the sector off late. The SMART Cities projects have ideas of “specially designed “cattle colonies” in it considering the long-term impacts.

Having completed over a decade in this sector myself, a lot seemed to have changed over time in this field which directly involves around seventy-five million people across the country. Being a dairy farmer, the environment was never so positive in terms of the expectations and potential towards the country’s progress. Statistically we have remained the largest producer with the lowest average productivity per cow. With such a large work force involved, it surely is one of the major contributors to our GDP growth. However, based on personal experience, I have seen many a farmer, who left dairying as their livelihood source due to various factors. Most blame the rising costs of fodder, lack of availability of labour, lower price realization, and a number of such factors which suggest that the trade is not viable anymore. A farmer feels happy, proud and angry at the same time that his son is not into dairying anymore.  Based on their experiences they do not want their children to suffer the fate and hence are discouraging their kids to stay away from it. We might be moving towards a scenario where we will get to see more of middle and large dairy farms flourishing instead of the traditional system where each household raised one or two cows? It will be wrong to look at cows purely from an economic point of view as they hold much more significance in our lives that the government should encourage small farmers to continue raising a few cows at least. For this to happen, the cost of inputs such as medical, feeding, etc. need to be affordable and easily available in every nook and corner of the country.  

So far, job schemes such as MNREGA have had their share of negative impact as well. It created a huge disguised unemployment leading to a shortage in availability of labour. The circle was completed when all this resulted in shortage of green fodder. However, the recent announcement of using MNREGA to create fodder farms may just be the game changer for a sector that has received a fair share of government attention in the last few years. This is an extremely important aspect of food safety and if job creation is clubbed with it, it will go a long way in meeting more than one of the goals of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Fodder, being the most important component is the single biggest reason for the losses that a farmer incurs on multiple fronts. Not only does the shortage of green fodder lead to rising feeding costs, but it also leads to mineral and other vitamin deficiencies for the cows that becomes the main reason for fertility related problems in cows. A cow which normally should give birth to 10-12 calves in her lifetime is now giving only 6-8 calves. The number will decrease further if green fodder concerns are not solved. The cost of purchasing a good high fertility cow has crossed a lakh rupee, which is more than twice what it costed a decade ago.

Another interesting trend that is leading to farmers leaving dairy for “greener pastures” is the rapid increase in the construction of rural roads under the Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) program. With better roads, the youngsters in rural areas are buying more two wheelers and going to distant places for work. Many are also opening shops on the roadsides. This is happening more so in the interiors which were so far cut off from the national highway networks. Running a shop is a sign of rising status symbol. It is helpful in getting more marriage proposals for the village youth when compared to a dairy farmer. The youth today looks at convenience and does not factor only the returns on investment while doing so. Rather the government should consider using the improved road infrastructure to build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables (milk, meat, fish, etc.). The budget announcement also talked of “Express and Freight” trains to have refrigerated coaches. By first laying a network of Bulk milk Coolers at the village level collection (VLC) centers, the cold chain network planned will be more effective.  

The government announced its plans of increasing the coverage of artificial insemination from the present 30% to over 70% in the coming five years. A decade ago, the reach of artificial insemination (AI) for milking animals was rare. The cost of getting an AI done was also relatively expensive for the farmer as earlier, many veterinarians used to provide the service. Whereas nowadays, schemes such as Gopal Mitras, etc have created veterinary field assistants or para vets in almost all Talukas if not villages. The farmers today have multiple options and they are aware of breeding and its impact on the milk productivity. Sex sorted semen technology, Embryo transfer technology, IVF, induced lactation, etc. are now part of the dairy eco system.

The often-used terms such as “Circular Economy” or “Waste to Wealth” are very much a part of the dairy lexicon as well. The increasing trend in producing biogas from cow dung to meet the energy requirements is being incentivized by the government. The slurry is then released into the farm lands. Its usage to manufacture compost and vermicomposting is gaining nationwide traction. Critics will definitely point towards the thirty odd nitrogen fertilizer plants and joke about the government’s push for organic farming. However, what cannot be denied is the increasing awareness about the pros and cons about excessive usage of chemical fertilizers.

The news about the ambitious target of doubling the milk processing capacity to 108 million tons in the next five years is definitely music to my ears. This will also lead to increase in per capita consumption that is expected to triple in the next three decades. The Kisan Credit Card (KCC) is already a popular medium of availing loans by the rural community and the government has set itself an ambitious target of 15 lakh crore target set for the year 2020-21 by means of agriculture credit.

I will end by mentioning that with a 18% increase in allocation of funds to Animal Husbandry and Dairying sector to Rs. 3289 Crores, there is no dearth of funds and I only hope at least readers will understand the chronology of the budget if not the cows and buffaloes.