National Milk Day: Kerala's Milma to organize high-profile event in Kochi

The event will feature a memorial talk on the father of India's White Revolution and the launch of a comprehensive cattle insurance policy in the state, according to a state government release issued on Friday.

J Chinchurani, Minister for Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development will inaugurate the function at Adlux Convention Centre. Parliamentarian Benny Behanan will roll out Milma's comprehensive cattle insurance policy on the occasion.

Human resources expert Nirmala Kurien will deliver the Dr Verghese Kurien memorial lecture, recounting the pioneering contributions of her father and social entrepreneur, who enabled India to become the world's largest milk producer with a strong cooperative dairy movement since 1970, top Milma functionaries said today.

The Leader of the Opposition, VD Satheesan, is among the key speakers at the function, which will be chaired by MLA Roji M John.

Milma Chairman KS Mani, Milma Ernakulam Regional Cooperative Milk Producers' Union (ERCMPU) Chairman MT Jayan, Thiruvananthapuram Regional Cooperative Milk Producers' Union (TRCMPU) Administrative Committee Convener Mani Viswanath and State Dairy Farmers Welfare Fund Board Chairman VP Unnikrishnan, besides functionaries of civic bodies, will be present.

KCMMF was established as a state adjunct of the National Dairy Programme 'Operation Flood' in 1980 with 450 dairy farmers and producing a total of 52,000 litres of milk.

Today, the cooperative societies under Milma total 3,300 and the milk procured has risen to more than 14 lakh litres a day. Every day, Milma distributes more than 17 lakh litres of milk, while its dairy products come out in 100-plus varieties, clocking an annual turnover of Rs 4,000 crore.

In fact, when Milma last raised the price of its milk (in December 2022) by six rupees a litre, the federation decided to give 83.75 per cent (Rs 5.02) to the farmers. (ANI)