Acknowledging that the government is considering hiking the price of Nandini milk supplied by Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF), Animal Husbandry Minister K. Venkatesh on Tuesday said that the quantum of hike is yet to be decided.
70% to farmers
“We are thinking of the hike but we have not decided by how much. As per the proposal, 70% of the hiked amount is to be given to farmers while 30% will be retained by the milk union,” the Minister told Legislative Council in response to a question from Janata Dal (Secular) Member K.A. Thippeswamy, who initiated a discussion on dairy sector in the State. Currently, the price of milk is ₹39 a litre for toned milk.
The Minister said that the government will hold a discussion with the stakeholders and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah before deciding on the hike.
Incentive backlog to be cleared
Regarding the government incentive that has been delayed to the milk farmers that was raised by several members cutting across party lines, Mr. Venkatesh said that the incentive of ₹5 per litre has been cleared till February 2023. “Very soon, all the pending dues will be cleared,” he said.
Earlier, members Hanumanth Nirani and Tejaswini Gowda, among others, spoke on the problems of dairy sector in the State. Mr. Nirani sought the release of pending financial incentive besides hiking the milk price hike so that farmers are benefited
Long-pending demand
The KMF, citing severe problems of dairy farmers, has been asking for a hike in milk price by at least ₹5 per litre. Recently, a delegation from KMF met the Minister and sought the hike. The previous milk price hike in November 2022 by ₹2 a litre was allowed despite KMF then seeking ₹5 per litre hike. Now, it has been cited that the November hike was insufficient as input price of dairy industry has gone up in the recent years by more than 30%
