Bhopal: Pay us more, dairy farmers tell coops; plan to sell milk to private vendors

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The representative body of the farmers of cooperative milk collection societies on Wednesday said they get less price than private vendors in exchange for milk produced at their farms.

The president, secretary and several farmers associated with Bhopal Cooperative Milk Federation reached Bhopal to meet the managing director of the federation Shamimuddin and CEO of Bhopal Cooperative Milk Union RPS Tiwari, secretary Narayan Singh told Free Press on Wednesday.

They told Tiwari that Bhopal Milk Union pays Rs 600 a kg but the private vendors in the area pay them Rs 640 for the same quantity of milk. As they are incurring a heavy loss, they will sell to private vendors if the cooperative society does not give them proper price.

The farmers have reduced milk supply to cooperatives society due to less payment, a reason why production has decreased in Sanchi cooperative, sources said.

The farmers and the office bearers of the societies had come from different parts of the state including Sangakhedi, Mowgli, Tilawat, Sevda, Harnia, Rampura, Dhakni committees.

They said that the Ujjain and Indore Milk Unions are paying Rs 640 a kg to the dairy farmers. But their Bhopal counterpart is still against the idea.

According to the farmers, Shamimuddin has said that the federation was ready to increase the price of milk, but the union will be responsible to implement the same.

According to the secretaries of milk societies, the union secretary has asked them to wait till January 17. The secretaries have also talked about the closure of the schemes run by union in the past. Representative Gajraj Singh and others said MD and CEO have of appropriate action into the matter. The farmers have also submitted a memorandum to the management.

Dairy farmers' demands:

Bills should be paid in 10 days instead of five. Milk union should set rates of buffalo milk on the basis of fat present in it, as private vendors do. Closed cooperative schemes should be revived.