Team Herald
PONDA: Goa’s dependency on the neighbouring States for more than 60 percent of its requirement of milk and vegetables is causing severe hardship to the people. The supply of these commodities is stopped since several days due to heavy flooding in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
“The situation is likely to continue for few more days,” say Ponda market vendors.
Despite acute shortage of milk, its price has not been hiked. However, the vegetable prices have skyrocketed in Ponda market.
The supply of various brands of milk such as Nandini, Arogya and Aditya is stopped due to floods in Kolhapur and Belgaum, where these brands are produced.
Goa’s milk requirement is around 2.5 lakh litres per day. However, despite heavy demand, Goa Dairy is currently producing only 50,000 litres of milk per day. Its production is down by 20,000 litres from 70,000 litres per day.
Besides Goa Dairy packets, only Aditya brand from Belgaum was available in Ponda market on Sunday; and that too, in a limited quantity. The milk vendors said that supply from neighbouring States has stopped due to floods. “Now, majority of my customers are not getting milk,” a vendor said.
Goa’s population is around 15 lakh and its milk requirement is around 2.5 to 3 lakh litres per day which is mostly met by various milk brands from the neighbouring States. Of these 2.5 to 3 lakh litres, around 70,000 litres are supplied by Goa Dairy, Sumul supplies around 20,000 litres and rest is supplied by various brands from Karnataka and Maharashtra. Some of these brands are even processing their milk in Goa after importing it. But flooding has ruined the business of dairy farmers.
Meanwhile, Goa Dairy Chairman Rajesh Faldesai admitted that their production of milk has dropped by 20,000 litres to 50,000 litres per day. He also informed that Goa Dairy procures 15,000 litres of milk from Kolhapur-based Gokul Dairy.
