Second White Revolution

The launch of a Rs 17,000-crore National Dairy Plan (NDP) to enable India's milk production to meet a projected demand of 200 million tonnes (mt) by 2021-22, is a timely initiative. With output last year estimated at 125 mt, the target calls for raising our annual yield by 7.5 mt, as against the average 4 mt achieved over the last 10 years. That makes it an extremely ambitious considering the growing pressure on fodder and feed resources, besides rising opportunity cost of rural labour: Grazing, feeding, cleaning and milking buffaloes daily is not an enticing proposition for today's workforce, including those from agricultural families.

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