Milk producers protest at Duttnagar Plant, demand fair prices, timely payments

Rampur (HP) Jul 2 (PTI) Milk producers on Wednesday staged a demonstration outside the Duttnagar Milk Chilling Plant in Himachal's Shimla district, demanding a fair price for milk and timely payments by procurement agencies.

The dairy farmers from six blocks across Shimla, Kullu, and Mandi districts, under the banner of Himachal Pradesh Milk Producers' Association, staged a demonstration and accused Milkfed authorities of gross mismanagement.

They complained that vehicles transporting milk to the Duttnagar plant are made to wait in the Sun for hours, resulting in the splitting of milk, causing heavy financial losses to producers.

Leading the protest, former MLA and CPI(M) leader Rakesh Singha said if the government fails to address these issues promptly, a bigger statewide agitation would be launched.

Sunil Kumar, Secretary of the Sholeshwar Milk Producers Cooperative Society, said, "It takes nearly four hours to transport milk from our village to the plant, and our vehicles are made to wait in direct sunlight, which spoils the milk".

Jawali Devi, a farmer from Jogni, said, "We often receive payments two months late and are never informed about the exact amount being paid".

Hemraj, Secretary of the Dofda Milk Cooperative, also complained of long delays and mismanagement at the Duttnagar plant, which was deteriorating the financial condition of small-scale dairy farmers.

Singha criticised the government for ignoring the veterinary infrastructure and said that "there is an acute shortage of staff in veterinary hospitals and dispensaries, animals are not getting timely vaccination or treatment and are paying the price".

The protesters demanded timely payments, installation of modern equipment and cooling infrastructure at the Duttnagar plant, immediate improvement in veterinary healthcare and staff recruitment. PTI CORR BPL BAL BAL