MARGAO: The government’s Kamdhenu Scheme is turning into a blunder and a failure allege dairy farmers.
They allege that promoting Jersey cows instead of high-yielding Indian breeds has reduced the production of milk and the government has no record of where the progeny of the 6400 cows it distributed under this scheme are.
After distributing 6400 cows in three years there has been no corresponding increase in the milk production, farmers allege. Goa still imports more than 1.5 to 2 lakh litres of milk for local consumption, which destroys the purpose of the scheme.
“The handling of the scheme has been carried out with short term perspectives, which are a liability to the State. The expected return on investment could have been higher if there had to be some discipline in the procedure,” said Hanumant Parab of the Govansh Rakhsa Manch.
“After running the scheme for so long Goa still produces 50 to 60,000 litres of milk and has to import around 2 lakh litres of milk from neighbouring States,” said Parab.
“By buying so many cows from Maharashtra and still importing milk from them is strange,” said dairy farmer Babal Prabhu Malkarnekar.
Traditional dairy farmers are angry over the frustrating results of the scheme. “Has the government ever wondered whether the cows given under Kamdhenu scheme are reproducing? They surely are. Then why isn’t the milk production increasing after three years. Where are the calves of the cows distributed under the Kamdhenu Scheme going?” asks Malkarnekar who promotes ethical dairy farming.
“Does the department have data of the bulls and the oxen that have been reproduced by the cows? If they aren’t going to the fields then where are they going?” Parab asked and demanded a proper cattle census for the scheme to have direction.
“Under the Kamdhenu Scheme the government has distributed around 6400 cows at subsidised prices. We track the cows with microchips,” Animal Husbandry Minister Ramesh Tawadkar said. The data on the offspring of the cows is not available.
Dairy farmers also question the promotion of Jersey cows over Indian cows like Sahiwal and the Gir.
“Indian breeds of Sahiwal and Gir, which I keep, are the most yielding. They have a good life and milking span too. It is strange why Jersey cows are being preferred over Indian cows,” Malkarnekar said.
