Cooperative Services
The Cooperative Services Group of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) focuses on strengthening dairy cooperatives across India. It provides technical and managerial support to enhance governance, financial management, and operational efficiency in cooperative societies. The group works on capacity building, policy advocacy, and institutional development to ensure sustainable growth and self-reliance of dairy cooperatives, ultimately benefiting millions of farmers.
Cooperative Services Group primarily involves itself in promoting and nurturing village dairy cooperative societies, district cooperative milk unions and state cooperative dairy federations. At the same time, it has also expanded its horizons and is now trying to leverage the countrywide network of dairy cooperatives in creating additional livelihood opportunities and better quality of life in villages by suitable interventions in beekeeping, fodder, fruits and vegetables etc by creating altogether a new set of cooperative institutions.
Objective:
- To create self-reliant, jointly owned, democratically controlled and professionally managed cooperative institutions, responsive to the socio-economic and cultural expectations of their members.
- Enhancing livelihood security of milk producers for improved quality of life.
- Strengthening dairying as a viable economic enterprise through farmer owned collective.
- Promoting good governance in cooperatives- enhanced fairness and transparency in milk procurement operations.
- Promoting enabling legal environment
- Enhancing women participation in the affairs of the dairy cooperatives.
- Capitalising the field outreach of producer collectives for the well being of milk producers through initiatives of (NDDB Foundation for Nutrition)
On-Going Projects:
- Revitalising Promising Producers’ Owned Institution (RPPOI) Scheme
- White Revolution 2.0
- NDDB Scheme to support MDCS/MPACS to initiate milk procurement activities
- Formation and Promotion of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs)
- Implementation of NBHM Scheme
- NDDB Foundation for Nutrition (NFN)
- Marketing Support
Revitalising Promising Producers’ Owned Institution (RPPOI) Scheme
RPPOI scheme of NDDB provides financial assistance in the form of grant in aid (maximum up to Rs. 3 crore per POI) and interest free secured loan (maximum up to Rs. 5 crore per POI) to strengthen the overall business operations of promising and eligible POIs. Assistance under the scheme will be provided for a maximum period of 5 years 2022-23 to 2026-27. This assistance is to be utilized by the eligible POIs to strengthen their milk procurement, processing and marketing operations, ICT and Training & Capacity building etc.
White Revolution 2.0
The cooperative led “White Revolution 2.0” is aimed at expanding cooperative coverage, employment generation and women’s empowerment with an objective “To increase the milk procurement of dairy cooperatives by 50% from the present level over the next five years by providing market access to dairy farmers in uncovered areas and increasing the share of dairy cooperatives in organized sector”.
To achieve this, an action plan has been prepared by NDDB for establishing about 75,000 new Multipurpose DCS (MDCS) during 2024-25 to 2028-29. Further, it is envisaged that about 46,000 existing village level DCS/PACS will be strengthened in terms of better and advanced milk procurement and testing infrastructure e.g. Automatic Milk Collection unit (AMCU), Data Processor Milk Collection Unit (DPMCU), testing equipment, Bulk Milk Coolers, etc. as per the requirement.
NDDB Scheme to support MDCS/MPACS to initiate milk procurement activities
In consonance with the White Revolution 2.0, to initiate milk procurement activities as an additional income generation in PACS/MPACS, NDDB has launched a scheme under which one-time financial assistance of Rs. 40,000/- per MPACS is provided to viable MPACS to initiate milk procurement activities. The financial assistance is routed through Milk Union/Federation/ Milk Producer Organizations operating in the region and they also provide forward linkage to these MPACs. As a pilot project, the scheme is to be rolled out in 1,000 MPACS. This scheme has now been extended to include MDCS also.
Under this scheme till date, projects worth Rs. 349.2 lakhs have been sanctioned to 12 milk unions and 1 Milk producer company supporting 873 MPACS/MDCS.
Formation and Promotion of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs)
Collectivisation of small and marginal farmers to form their organisations as Farmer Producer Organisations has been recognised as the most effective and appropriate institutional mechanism to reduce cost of production, increase productivity and facilitate better market linkages so as to enhance their net income. Realising the significance of FPOs, the Government of India has brought a dedicated Central Sector Scheme “Formation and Promotion of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs)”.
NDDB has received approval for formation and promotion of total 126 FPOs:
- 100 Fodder Plus FPOs
- 26 Beekeepers’ FPOs
Fodder Plus FPOs
All 100 Fodder Plus FPOs have been registered in 19 states. These Fodder Plus FPOs have initiated business activities such as green fodder production and sale, silage making and sale, securing dry fodder and sale, trading of silage, dry fodder and fodder seed sale, Sale of feed and feed supplement, Sale of Silage bags, Sale of culture, Sale of Slips, other allied activities etc. They are also undertaking seed distribution among the farmers for green fodder production, training and handholding of dairy farmers for production of green fodder silage.
Beekeepers’ FPOs
26 Beekeepers’ FPOs have been registered in 11 states of the country. These FPOs have initiated business transactions in terms of selling honey collected from members by providing suitable market linkages such as through dairy cooperative brands or launching a new brand altogether.
Some of the established and popular dairy cooperatives have started selling honey under their respective brand names such as Aanchal by Uttarakhand Dairy Cooperative Federation, Vashudhara by Valsad Milk Union, Purabi by West Assam Milk Union, Sundarini Naturals by Sundarbans, Sagar by Mehasana Milk Union, AMUL NutriBee by Kaira Milk Union.
NDDB is organizing various training and capacity building programmes to these FPOs to grow into sustainable entities, such as Board Orientation Programme at Anand, Training of CEOs, Training of key officials of CBBOs, Training of farmers etc.
NDDB is working closely through dairy cooperatives, Producer Owned Institutions and other agencies for implementation of this scheme and to achieve the goal of a “Sweet Revolution”.
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