JAIPUR: After camels and cows,
Rajasthan government has decided to venture into the production of
goat milk and its products.
Under this project,
goat milk, goat milk powder, cheese, flavoured milk and soap will be produced by
rural women and will be sold to multinationals. At present, the project is going on in 12 districts and 12,000 women are involved in it.
World Bank has provided Rs 85 crore for the entire project which will be used to empower rural women. The government has applied to get the registration of these women groups as a company under the Companies Act, 2013. It will be called ‘Goat Farmers Production Company’.
The scheme is looked after by Rajasthan Agricultural Competitiveness Project (RACP). Project Director of RACP Om Prakash, while talking to TOI, said that goat milk has many nutritious qualities and India is its largest producer, and Rajasthan produces 35% of the national share. “Under this project we will provide four goats to the farmer, fodder, nutritional supplements for the goats, to increase the milk production and will ultimately sell it to the multinational. We will even provide training to the women to vaccinate the goats and will provide a medical kit to detect any disease at an early stage. The training to the rural women will be provided by a Lady Link Worker in every panchayat, who will be trained by the government. We are hopeful that this will increase the income of the women of the state and will provide a good result,” said Prakash.
At present, India is producing five million tonnes of goat milk every day. Goat milk has digestive elements, medium and small fatty acids and has components almost equivalent to the breast milk of a woman, which is why it is beneficial for children. At present, goat milk cheese is sold in the market for Rs 2000 and soap for Rs 200.
Pritpal Singh Kalra, Project Coordinator (Livestock) said, “We are now utilizing our goat milk share in the state properly. The scheme will become a success and we will expand it even more. We even have plans of producing flavoured goat milk in plastic bottles. We are planning to sign a MoU with a multinational, that will purchase the products and the income will directly reach the women.”
For the proper availability of goats, RACP department is also planning to open eight ‘haats’ for the sale and purchase of the goats. Near these ‘haats’, a dairy will be opened, selling goat milk and its products. This is a first of its kind model in the country and can become a landmark for other states to follow.
