NDDB Chairman Meenesh Shah’s interview (Part 1) received raving reviews from across states with many readers writing to the Indian Cooperative to publish the second (and the last) part of the conversation with the NDDB Chairman sooner than later.
In a thirty-minute virtual interview, Shah touched on several issues including his struggle to popularize powder milk not only in India but also abroad. His successful efforts at lowering the ice cream rate to Rs 2 and making it affordable for the masses were received by readers with appreciation.
Shah also dwelt on the inability of NDDB to replicate the Amul model in many states. Shah argued that the Amul experiment has been successful in many states but there are states that are yet to be covered by it.
In this context, Shah referred to the given mandate of NDDB and its ascribed role. “NDDB’s role is advisory and it’s up to states to follow our prescription; we cannot force them beyond a point”, said Shah explaining why NDDB has failed in igniting a full-fledged dairy revolution in several of the northern states.
Notwithstanding this, NDDB Chairman Shah has refabricated some old schemes and launched some new ones after he took over. Some of his famed projects such as women manure co-ops, solar Co-ops, mushroom Co-ops, Bee-Keeping FPOs, and Modern Dairy Co-op Societies at the village level are already attracting attention.
NDDB has assisted in the formation of first of its kind all women manure cooperatives in two villages in Anand. Members of these cooperatives not only possess household-level biogas plants but also through their cooperatives aggregate their surplus slurry which is processed to produce organic fertilizers.
Women biogas farmers are now saving equivalent to two LPG cylinders on gas and additionally earn about Rs.1000 to Rs.2000 from the sale of slurry through cooperative. NDDB is also supporting three CSR-supported projects to replicate this model in Bihar, Odisha, and Tamil Nadu. It has also tied up with Tata Trust to establish 10 such models in 10 locations across the country (Maharashtra, Rajasthan, UP, Assam, Sikkim, West Bengal, Jharkhand).
Listing the new initiatives Shah said NDDB has launched Modern Dairy Cooperative Society (DCS) initiative with an idea to develop a village level DCS wherein new technologies are demonstrated.
A remarkable initiative of NDDB is Solar Pump Irrigators’ Cooperative Enterprise (SPICE). NDDB supported farmers of Mujkuva village and helped them organize India’s first grid-connected solar pump irrigators’ cooperative enterprise, wherein farmers affiliated with a collective have installed solar pumps into their fields.
These farmers use solar energy for irrigation and export the surplus power to the power distribution company through a microgrid established and managed by them. These farmers are thus earning from the sale of electricity up to Rs.5000/ month apart from the savings on energy bills for irrigation. This cooperative was inaugurated by the Prime Minister in 2018 and its operations and design considerations have inspired the design of Gujarat’s innovative Suryashakti Kisan Yojana, said Shah.
Speaking further, Meenesh Shah said NDDB has recently taken up pilot projects to promote backyard poultry and Mushroom cultivation amongst smallholder dairy farmers. The Mushroom initiatives have been adopted by the farmers in some villages of Anklav Taluka wherein NDDB is exploring possibilities of market tie-ups and formation of collectives.
NDDB has set up the Integrated Farming System (IFS) model from the perspective of a smallholder dairy farmer who generally owns 2-3 acres of land and 2-3 dairy animals. The model is helping to showcase a sustainable smallholder dairy farming system with round-the-year cash flow, stability of livelihood, and nutritional security for a farming family.
It is also coming up as a “farm school” for other farmers, students, and other stakeholders for the demonstration and adoption of sustainable practices. Agriculture, Horticulture, Dairy, Poultry, Fisheries are the key activities under IFS and their integration with each other is achieved to reduce dependence on external inputs and also enhance returns.
NDDB is promoting scientific bee-keeping among farmers. Besides, NDDB has launched many other initiatives including Accelerated Breed Improvement Programme (ABIP), Breed Multiplication Farm, Import of germplasm, Semen Station Strengthening Projects, Establishment of AI Network in the NER States, Project Gir Varanasi, Ovum Pick-up, and In Vitro Embryo Production (OPU-IVEP) and focus on Animal Health & Nutrition.