Dairy Sahakar Scheme
The Dairy Sahakar Scheme was launched to strengthen the dairy sector of India. It was launched from Anand, Gujarat in October 2021 during the 75th foundation year celebrations of Amul. Under the scheme, the financial support is extended to the eligible cooperatives for activities such as milk processing, milk procurement, quality assurance, branding, value addition, marketing, packaging, storage and transportation. Also, the scheme provides financial aid to export dairy products.
Financial Support to the scheme
The financial support for the scheme is provided by the National Cooperative Development Corporation. Around Rs. 5,000 crores have been allocated to the scheme.
Objective of the Scheme
There are to two main objectives of the scheme. One is to double the farmers income and the other is to boost Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
- The overall objective of the scheme is to double farmers income. The Government of India is in the path of doubling farmers income by 2022. This is to be done by production growth, increasing the agricultural prices, diversifying farm and non-farm products, reducing purchased inputs and through coping mechanism. The Dairy Sahar Scheme is a coping mechanism.
- Also, the scheme was launched to boost the Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. The Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan works to make India completely self-reliant.
Scheme Implementation Ministry
The scheme is to be implemented by National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC). Earlier NCDC operated under Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare. After July 2021, it operates under Ministry of Co-operation. The Ministry of Cooperation provides a separate legal, administrative and policy framework to strengthen the cooperative movement in the country. It works to strengthen the “Ease of Doing Business” for cooperatives. The vision of the ministry is “Sahkar se Samriddhi”. The NCDC was established in 1963. It works to plan and promote programmes for production, marketing, processing, storage, import and export of agricultural goods. It functions on cooperative principles.
