NDDB to support Punjab's dairy farmers in enhancing income
Darpan News Desk IANS, 21 Apr, 2022 10:29 AM
New Delhi/Anand, April 21 (IANS) The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) on Thursday assured support to Punjab government's endeavour in setting up 12 more milk plants in the state at an estimated outlay of about Rs 900 crore in order to bail out dairy farmers.
There already are 11 milk plants in Punjab, covering 6,000 villages, and the new ones would taking the total numbersto 23 and would cover a total of 12,000 villages. This would help in procuring additional 10 lakh litres of milk per day.
"This endeavour will not just supplement the farmers' income but also lead to another White Revolution in Punjab," said NDDB Chairman Meenesh Shah after meeting Punjab's Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development & Fisheries, Kuldip Singh Dhaliwal Minister at Anand.
The Punjab government would establish Total Mixed Ration (TMR) plant at Amritsar on the lines of two existing plants successfully operational in Ganganagar and Kolhapur, at an estimated outlay of Rs 80 crore, so as to overcome the problem of pollution and to provide cheaper feed to the dairy farmers, officials said.
"NDDB would provide all necessary assistance. This would also help solve the problem of burning crop residues."
Shah said that NDDB will work with the state government and arrange the required financial and technical assistance.
With the detailed project report completed and land acquisition started, the work on building India's longest (11.80 km) road tunnel linking Thane-Borivali - passing beneath the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) - will start from March 2022, Maharashtra PWD Minister Eknath Gaikwad said on Thursday.
The Punjab BJP feels that anger among the farmers in the state against the three new farm laws and its leadership is at the behest of the ruling Congress party. Recently over a dozen BJP leaders were taken hostage in Rajpura in Patiala by protesting farmers.
This is a significant development after the new Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw made it crystal clear within minutes of taking charge that "law of the land is supreme" and no one can afford to disrespect it.
Denying reports of his resignation, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's media advisor Raveen Thukral said on Thursday that the former would lead the Congress to victory in the Assembly elections scheduled early next year.
India is still witnessing the second wave which is not yet over as northeastern states and some parts of south India are still battling it, a member of the government's Covid expert panel said on Thursday.
The passage of the bill through both the houses of the parliament will be fulfilment of the demand of 12 lakh Indians who marched across 22 states and 12,000km demanding a strong law against trafficking along with Kailash Satyarthi in 2017.
