National Milk Day 2024 – November 26 – DairyScoop

National Milk Day is annually observed across India on 26th November to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr Verghese Kurien, “Father of the White Revolution in India”.

• The annual observance is led by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying(MoFAH&D).
• 26th November 2024 marks the observance of the 11th National Milk Day and 103rd Birth anniversary of Verghese Kurein, fondly known as “Milkman of India”.

Background: 

i.National Milk Day was jointly initiated by the Indian Dairy Association (IDA), National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and 22 other State-Level Milk Federations in 2014.

ii.The first ever National Milk Day was observed on 26th November 2014.

About Verghese Jurien: 

i.Verghese Jurien was born on 26th November 1921 in Calicut (now Kozhikode), Kerala and passed away on 9th September 2012 in Nadiad, Gujarat.

ii.He founded NDDB in 1965 and served as the first Chairman of NDDB from 1965 to 1998.

iii.He released his autobiography titled “I too Had a Dream” in 2005.

Awards and Honours: 

i.The Government of India (GoI) honoured him with Padma Shri in 1965; Padma Bhushan in 1966 for trade and industry and Padma Vibushan in 1999 for science and engineering.

ii.In 1989, He was honoured with the World Food Prize for devising a cooperative milk production and distribution system. He also received the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1963 for his innovative coordination of the government and private sector to enhance food and sanitation in India.

White Revolution: 

i.The White Revolution or Operation Flood was launched in India in 1970. It was  a government-sponsored program that aimed to increase milk production and consumption in India.

ii.In September 2024, Union Minister Amit Shah unveiled ‘White Revolution 2.0′, a comprehensive initiative aimed at empowering women farmers and creating job opportunities.

iii.The programme focuses on four key areas – empowering women farmers, enhancing local milk production, strengthening dairy infrastructure, and boosting dairy exports.

iv.Under White Revolution 2.0, the government aims to increase milk procurement by dairy cooperative societies by 50%  over the next five years.

Events 2024: 

The celebration of National Milk Day 2024 was graced by Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, MoFAH&D as the Chief Guest.

• Ministers of State (MoS) Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel (MoFAH&D) and George Kurian were present during the event.

Publications: 

The event witnessed the launch of 2 significant publications, “Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics (BAHS) 2024” and “Manual on the Identification of Elite Cows”.

Manual on the Identification of Elite Cows:

i.Manual on the Identification of Elite Cows is designed to guide the creation of a national Milch herd composed of elitists of elite dairy animals.

ii.This also highlights the government’s focus on evidence-based decision-making and technological advancement in the field of animal husbandry.

Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics 2024:

Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), MoFAH&D released its annual publication titled “Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics (BAHS) 2024”, which provides comprehensive data on the livestock sector.

i.BAHS 2024 is based on the outcomes of the Integrated Sample Survey conducted for the period from 1st March 2023 to 29th February 2024. 

ii.This survey generates crucial data on the production estimates of Major Livestock Products (MLPs) like Milk, Eggs, Meat, and Wool. This plays a major role in policy formulation in the livestock sector.

iii.This includes state-wise estimation of production and per-capita availability of MLPs including insights into the estimated number of animals involved in milk production, poultry egg-laying birds, animals slaughtered, and sheep shorn.

iv.This also provides data on veterinary hospitals, polyclinics, gaushalas, state farms, and other infrastructure details.

v.This also provided the data on the number of artificial inseminations performed, and a global perspective on the livestock sector.

All India Motor Rally:

Amul(Anand Milk Union Limited), a cooperative brand led by Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Limited, in association with Bajaj Auto Limited, organised the All India Motor Rally. 

• The rally was flagged off by Union Minister Amit Shah, Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) on 19th November 2024 from Himmatnagar in Sabarkantha, Gujarat.
• The rally was completed at the Manekshaw Centre and was received by Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh.

Panel Discussions:

The event also witnessed 2 panel discussion:

• “Women Led Livestock and Dairy Sector” to explore the transformative role of women in the livestock and dairy sector.
• “Empowering farmers through local Veterinary support” on strategies for empowering farmers by strengthening local veterinary support systems.

National Gopal Ratna Awards:

i.Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh conferred the National Gopal Ratna Awards, one of the highest National Awards in the livestock and dairy sector.

ii.The awards were presented under 3 categories: Best Dairy Farmer rearing indigenous cattle/buffalo breeds, Best Artificial Insemination Technician, and Best Dairy Cooperative Society (DCS)/ Milk Producer Company/ Dairy Farmer Producer Organization from across India.

iii.DAHD introduced a new Special award for North Eastern Region (NER) States in each category  to encourage and boost the dairy development activities in NER.

Winners of National Gopal Ratna Awards:

Prize money: The Award consists of a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh for 1st rank, Rs. 3 lakh for 2nd rank, Rs. 2 lakh for 3rd rank and Rs. 2 lakh for Special Award for North Eastern Region, along with a Certificate of merit and a memento.

India’s Milk Production Rose by 4% to Record 239.3 MT in FY24

Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh, MoFAH&D stated that the milk production has increased to around 239 MT in 2023-24 on the back of improvement in productivity.

Points to note: 

i.India’s milk production increased by around 4% annually to 239.3 million tonnes in 2023-24. The milk output of buffaloes declined by 16% annually.

• The milk output of India stood at 230.58 MT in 2022-23.

ii.The annual growth rate has slowed down in the previous two fiscal years.

• The growth rate was 6.62% in 2017-18; 6.47% in FY19; 5.69% in FY20; 5.81% in FY21; and 5.77% in FY22.
• Milk production came down to 3.83% in FY23 and 3.78% in FY24.