Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has announced plans to open milk procurement centres in every panchayat across the State under Kheera Dhara Mission.
The initiative aims to provide farmers with a platform to sell their milk in their own locality. Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Gokulanand Mallik informed this after a review meeting of the Odisha State Cooperative Milk Producers’ Federation (OMFED).
According to Minister Mallik, OMFED parlours will also be opened in various locations to cater to the demands of the people. So far, 20 milk procurement centres have been operationalized, and plans are underway to open 27-28 more centres within a month. Dairy farmers will receive payment for their milk through direct benefit transfer (DBT), he added.
In another development, OMFED has started supplying ghee to the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration. The minister stated that OMFED has the capacity to produce over 8 tons of ghee per day and is willing to provide ghee at wholesale prices to the temple. OMFED is also planning to open new dairy plants in Sambalpur, Ganjam, and Balasore to increase milk and ghee production.
Considering the needs of the people, OMFED will manufacture water pouches, ice cream, chocolates in in various plants in the state.
