Mumbai: Brace yourself for a steep milk price hike

Get ready to shell out an extra Rs 3-4 per litre for milk, as the government is formulating a policy to pay dairy farmers more, when buying milk. The plan for the policy comes in the light of the state losing out to several private milk sellers, who pay a higher amount to dairy farmers.

Mahadeo Jankar, the minister of animal husbandry, confirmed that he would pay the farmers extra, so that they could sell milk to the government, instead of private players.

Currently, the government buys milk at Rs 22.50 per litre from farmers and then sells it for Rs 33-34 per litre. Private sellers, on the other hand, charge Rs 39 per litre or above, and hence, manage to buy milk at a higher rate from the farmers, said a source.

Official says
Gajanan Raut, Aarey CEO, confirmed that a policy on these lines is being discussed, where the government will either buy milk at a higher rate from the dairy farmers, or will provide them with better infrastructure.

"We are in the process of formulating a policy that will enable us to buy milk from farmers at a higher rate. If we buy milk at a higher rate, we will also sell it at a higher rate, making our prices closer to that of private players," Raut said.

Meanwhile, Jankar confirmed that the state has issued notice to all stables in Aarey Milk Colony, demanding that milk be sold to them first.

"The stables within Aarey Milk colony usually sell milk outside. The notice mentions that they (dairy farmers) are using our space, as well as our funds and hence, the milk they generate should be sold to us first. By paying extra to the farmers, we are trying to keep them happy," said Jankar.

State authorities also feel that there is a notion that expensive milk is of better quality, and hence, the price hike won't put off people from buying milk.

"We sell milk at a cheaper rate, but I think people have this misconception that costlier milk is better than the cheaper one," said Raut.