Odisha to provide 200 ml of fortified milk to all school students – DairyScoop

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government will soon give milk to all its school students in mid-day meal under the GiftMilk programme of the National Dairy Development Board that supports nutrition for children and help combat malnutrition.

The state’s fisheries and animal resources development minister Gokulananda Mallik on Tuesday said 200 ml of flavoured milk fortified with vitamin A and D (as per FSSAI standards) would soon be distributed among government school children on all working days through a dairy cooperative under corporate social responsibility (CSR) allocations.

Eleven states in India, including Delhi, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Manipur, Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana, currently provide milk to school students through GiftMilk programme, started by the National Dairy Development Board.

In Odisha, pilot initiative has already begun in Rairangpur region of Mayurbhanj district where 200 millilitres of milk are being given to 1,184 students across 29 schools.

“The government is planning to introduce many welfare schemes for the school students. Our government is planning to extend the project to other schools soon,” Mallik added.

The minister said that milk production will be strengthened in the state under the National Livestock Fund Gokul Yojana. Arrangements have been made to provide 3,000 cows to underprivileged people under the Gokul Yojana.

“An estimated ₹38 crore will be spent on this project. A provision of 3,000 cows has been made for the development of women, tribals and Harijans in the state. Under the chief minister’s Kamdhenu Yojana, a provision has been made to give two cows to people at a 70% discount,” Mallik said.

Odisha’s annual milk production has reached approximately 24 lakh tonnes (2.4 million tonnes) as of the 2022-2023 period, a significant increase from 8.75 lakh tonnes in 20001. Despite this growth, the state faces challenges regarding self-sufficiency in milk production. The per capita milk availability in Odisha is about 144 grams per day, which is substantially lower than the national average of 444 grams per day and below the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recommendation of 300 grams per day.