Dairy boost: Assam rolls out Rs 5 per litre milk subsidy; CM Himanta Biswa Sarma launches plant expansion to support rural economy | India News
To give a fresh boost to Assam’s dairy sector, the state government on Sunday introduced a new subsidy scheme offering Rs 5 per litre of milk to dairy farmers. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma launched the initiative at a programme in Guwahati, where he also laid the foundation stone for expanding the Panjabari plant of West Assam Milk Producers’ Cooperative Union Ltd (WAMUL), which sells under the Purabi Dairy brand.“Empowering our dairy farmers. Today, we formally rolled out the subsidy scheme… which will now receive Rs 5/litre subsidy for the milk they give for processing at cooperative societies,” Sarma said in a post on X, adding that the move would encourage higher production, improve farmers’ earnings, and spark a rural dairy revolution.According to officials quoted by news agency PTI, over 20,000 dairy farmers across Assam are expected to benefit from this subsidy scheme. The state sees this step as essential to strengthen milk supply chains and enhance economic opportunities in rural areas.At the same event, Sarma performed the ‘bhoomi pujan’ for a Rs 104 crore expansion of the Purabi Dairy processing unit. The facility, once upgraded, will double its processing capacity from 1.5 lakh litres per day (LLPD) to 3 LLPD. This project is part of an MoU between WAMUL and the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), signed during the Advantage Assam 2.0 Summit earlier this year.Calling the expansion “a crucial step towards a self-reliant Assam in the dairy sector,” Sarma said it would ensure better market access for farmers and strengthen the state’s nutritional security.NDDB and WAMUL chairman Meenesh Shah said the plant’s growth would support a broader dairy network, boost milk collection, and reach more consumers in the region.The Panjabari facility is the largest milk processing plant in the North East and plays a central role in the Assam Dairy Development Plan (ADDP), which aims to process 10 LLPD state-wide in the formal dairy sector.As part of the expansion, pasteurised pouch milk output will increase from 1.15 LLPD to 2.0 LLPD. The facility will also add a new ice cream production line of 20 thousand litres per day (TLPD), scalable to 30 TLPD, along with additional dairy products totalling 70 TLPD.
