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Essay on White Revolution in India
Essay Contents:
- Essay on Introduction to White Revolution
- Essay on the Father of White Revolution
- Essay on the Implementation of White Revolution
- Essay on the The Course of White Revolution
- Essay on Regional Patterns of Growth in White Revolution
- Essay on Policies Influencing the Dairy Sector in White Revolution
- Essay on the Effects of the White Revolution
- Essay on Matching Demand and Supply of White Revolution
- Essay on Milk Industry and White Revolution
- Essay on White Revolution and Gender Revolution
- Essay on the Success of White Revolution
- Essay on the Criticisms of White Revolution
Essay # 1. Introduction to White Revolution:
Operation Flood was a rural development programme started by India’s National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in 1970. One of the largest of its kind, the programme objective was to create a nationwide milk grid.
Kurien has since then built this organization into one of the largest and most successful institutions in India. The Amul pattern of cooperatives had been so successful, in 1965, and then Prime Minister of India, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, created the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to replicate the programme on a nationwide basis citing Kurien’s “extraordinary and dynamic leadership” upon naming him chairman.
Kurien also set up GCMMF (Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation) in 1973 to sell the products produced by the dairies. Today GCMMF sells AMUL brand products not only in India but also overseas. He quit the post of GCMMF Chairman in 2006 following disagreements with GCMMF management.
It resulted in making India the largest producer of milk and milk products, and hence is also called the White Revolution of India. It also helped reduce malpractices by milk traders and merchants. This revolution followed the Indian Green Revolution and helped in alleviating poverty and famine levels from their dangerous proportions in India during the era.
Earlier, Milk was always available in plenty, but the sad truth was that the middleman was in control of marketing and siphoned away the major share of the farmer’s profits. During seasons of plenty, the farmers were forced to drastically cut down their prices to sell off their surplus supplies. And during lean periods, milk production fell considerably, resulting in a shortage, unable to meet the market demand.
To deal with this problem, ‘Operation Flood’ was launched in 1969-70 to initiate and organize cooperatives that would be wholly responsible for the procurement, storage and marketing of milk, thereby eliminating the need and role of the middleman completely. These cooperatives would also convert surplus milk into a range of dairy products so farmers were assured a regular income and fair share of profits, around the year.
‘Operation Flood’ heralded the beginning of the White Revolution that brought tangible profits to milk farmers and initiated a dramatic change in their lives.
Operation Flood has helped dairy farmers, direct their own development, placing control of the resources they create in their own hands. A ‘National Milk Grid’, links milk producers throughout India with consumers in over 700 towns and cities, reducing seasonal and regional price variations while ensuring that the producer gets a major share of the price consumers pay.
The bedrock of Operation Flood has been village milk producers’ cooperatives, which procure milk and provide inputs and services, making modern management and technology available to members.
Operation Flood’s objectives included:
i. Increase milk production (“a flood of milk”)
ii. Augment rural incomes
iii. Fair prices for consumers
Essay # 2. Father of White Revolution:
One man’s resolute faith and efforts have gained a prominent position for India on the Dairy map of the world – Dr. Varghese Kurien created the Operation Flood in the country that has reached about 250 million and is one of the largest agricultural development programs in the world.
Dr. Varghese Kurien, better known as the “Father of White Revolution” in India is also known as the Milk man of India. He is the architect of a successful largest dairy development program in the world called as Operation Flood. Kurien set up the Anand model of cooperative development, engineered the white revolution in India, and made India the largest milk producer in the world.
He was born on November 26, 1921 in Kozhikode, Kerala. He graduated in Physics from Loyola College, Madras in 1940 and then did B.E. (Mech.) from the University of Madras. After completing his degree, he joined the Tata Steel Technical Institute, Jamshedpur from where he graduated in 1946.
During this period he underwent nine months of specialized training in dairy engineering at the National Dairy Research Institute of Bangalore. He then went to USA on a government scholarship to earn his Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University. He returned from America in 1948 and joined the Dairy Department of the Government of India.
In May 1949, he was posted as Dairy Engineer at the Government Research Creamery, a small milk powder factory, in Anand, Gujarat. At that time, private dairies, middlemen, inefficient collection and distribution systems resulted in milk of varying quality being erratically available across the country, often at higher prices to consumers but with little profits to producers.
During the same time, the newly formed cooperative dairy, Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producer’s Union Limited (KDCMPUL) was engaged in battle of survival with the privately owned Poison Dairy. Driven by the challenge, Kurien left his government job and volunteered to help Sri Tribhuvandas Patel, the Chairman of KDCMPUL, to build an in-house processing plant and organize the cooperative (Anand Milk Union Limited – AMUL) to handle its own marketing directly to consumers.
After years of initial struggle, the cooperative began to produce dramatic results, involving over two million farmers. Based on its successes, Prime Minister Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri created the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in 1965 to replicate the AMUL model nationally.
The Prime Minister cited Dr. Kurien’s “extraordinary and dynamic leadership” upon naming him chairman. In 1973, Dr. Kurien set up GCMMF (Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation) to market the products produced by the dairies. Reaching nearly 250 million people, Operation Flood is one of the largest agricultural development programs in the world.
India has also emerged as the largest producer of milk in the world, surpassing the United States and today the milk economy is worth 2,00,000 crores. The country’s dairy supply continues to grow 3.8 per cent annually, while population only grows 2 per cent, thus increasing the per capita availability of dietary proteins, especially in areas identified as suffering from nutritional deficits.
Domestic milk prices have stabilized, India’s towns and cities receive an adequate supply of hygienic milk, and the 12 million small farmers and landless laborers who make up the majority of dairy cooperative membership now have a regular source of income. In addition, 95% of the equipment used in NDDB cooperatives is domestically produced.
Despite these achievements, perhaps Dr. Kurien’s greatest contribution with Operation Flood was to put the farmer in command as the owner of her/his own cooperative – a pivotal factor in the programme’s success. During his illustrious career, Dr. Varghese Kurien, won many accolades and awards.
These include: Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership (1963), Padma Shri (1965), Padma Bhushan (1966), Krishi Ratna Award (1986), Wateler Peace Prize Award of Carnegie Foundation (1986), World Food Prize Laureate (1989), International Person of the Year (1993) by the World Dairy Expo, Madison, Wisconsin, USA, and Padma Vibhushan (1999).
Essay # 3. Implementation
of White Revolution:
Gujarat-based co-operation “Anand Milk Union Limited”, often called Amul, was the engine behind the success of the programme and in turn became a mega company based on the cooperative approach. Tribhuvandas Patel was the founder Chairman of Amul, while Verghese Kurien was the chairman of NDDB at the time when the programme was implemented.
Verghese Kurien, who was then 33, gave the professional management skills and necessary thrust to the cooperative, and is considered the architect of India’s ‘ White Revolution’ (Operation Rood). His work has been recognized by the award of a Padma Bhushan, the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, the Carnegie-Wateler World Peace Prize, and the World Food Prize.
Operation Flood was implemented in three phases:
Phase I:
Phase I (1970-1980) was financed by the sale of skimmed milk powder and butter oil donated by the European Union (then the European Economic Community) through the World Food Programme. NDDB planned the programme and negotiated the details of EEC assistance.
During its first phase, Operation Flood linked 18 of India’s premier milk sheds with consumers in India’s major metropolitan cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, thus, establishing mother dairies in four metros.
Operation flood, also referred to as “White Revolution” is a gigantic project propounded by Government of India for developing dairy industry in the country. The Operation Flood – 1 originally meant to be completed in 1975, actually spanned the period of about nine years from 1970-79, at a total cost of Rs.116 crores.
At start of operation Flood-1 in 1970, certain set of aims were kept in view for the implementation of the programmes. Improvement by milk marketing the organized dairy sector in the metropolitan cities Mumbai (then Bombay), Kolkata (then Calcutta), Chennai (then Madras), Delhi. The objectives of commanding share of milk market and speed up development of dairy animals respectively hinter lands of rural areas with a view to increase both production and procurement.
Operation Flood Phase II (1981-1985) increased the milk sheds from 18 to 136; 290 urban markets expanded the outlets for milk. By the end of 1985, a self-sustaining system of 43,000 village cooperatives with 4,250,000 milk producers were covered. Domestic milk powder production increased from 22,000 tonnes in the pre-project year to 140,000 tons by 1989, all of the increase coming from dairies set up under Operation Hood. In this way EEC gifts and World Bank loan helped promote self-reliance. Direct marketing of milk by producers’ cooperatives increased by several million liters a day.
Phase III (1985-1996) enabled dairy cooperatives to expand and strengthen the infrastructure required to procure and market increasing volumes of milk. Veterinary first-aid health care services, feed and artificial insemination services for cooperative members were extended, along with intensified member education.
Operation Flood’s Phase III consolidated India’s dairy cooperative movement, adding 30,000 new dairy cooperatives to the 42,000 existing societies organized during Phase II. Milk sheds peaked to 173 in 1988-89 with the numbers of women members and Women’s Dairy Cooperative Societies increasing significantly.
Phase III gave increased emphasis to research and development in animal health and animal nutrition. Innovations like vaccine for Theileriosis, bypassing protein feed and urea-molasses mineral blocks, all contributed to the enhanced productivity of milch animals.
Essay # 4. The Course of White Revolution
:
Milk production in India increased from 17 million tonnes in 1950-51 to 84.6 million tonnes in 2001-02 and is reached to 108.6 million tonnes during 2008-09. Therefore, from being a recipient of massive material support from the World Food Program and European Community in the 1960s, India has rapidly positioned itself as the world’s largest producer of milk. Milk production-in India during the last five decades.
Milk production in the country was stagnant during the 1950s and 1960s, and annual production growth was negative in many years. The annual compound growth rate in milk production during the first decade after independence was about 1.64 percent; during the 1960s, this growth rate declined to 1.15 percent. During the late 1960s, the Government of India initiated major policy changes in the dairy sector to achieve self-sufficiency in milk production.
Producing milk in rural areas through producer cooperatives and moving processed milk to urban demand centers became the cornerstone of government dairy development policy. This policy initiative gave a boost to dairy development and initiated the process of establishing the much-needed linkages between rural producers and urban consumers.
The performance of the Indian dairy sector during the past three decades has been very impressive. Milk production grew at an average annual rate of 4.57 per cent during the 1970s, 5.68 per cent during the 1980s, and 4.21 per cent during the 1990s. The country’s milk production has reach to 108.6 million tonnes in 2008-09.
This growth was achieved through extensive intervention by the Indian government, as well as through increased demand driven by population growth, higher incomes, and urbanization. Until 1991, the Indian dairy industry was highly regulated and protected.
Milk processing and product manufacturing were mainly restricted to small firms and cooperatives. High import duties, non-tariff barriers, restrictions on imports and exports, and stringent licensing provisions provided incentives to Indian-owned small enterprises and cooperatives to expand production in a protected market.
Indian policy makers saw the development of the dairy sector as a measure to create supplementary employment and income among the small and marginal farming households and landless wage earners, as milk production takes place in millions of rural households scattered across the country.
Despite its being the largest milk producer in the world, India’s per capita availability of milk is one of the lowest in the world, although it is high by developing country standards. The per capita availability of milk, which declined during the 1950s and 1960s (from 124 gm per day in 1950-51 to 121 gm in 1973-74) expanded substantially during the 1980s and 1990s and reached about 226 gm per day in 2001-02.
The per capita consumption of milk and milk products in India is among the highest in Asia. However, it is still below the world average of 285 gm per day and the minimum nutritional requirement of 280 gm per day as recommended by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Several factors have contributed to the increased milk production in the country. First, milk and dairy products have cultural significance in the Indian diet. A large portion of the population is lacto-vegetarian, so milk and dairy products are an important source of protein in the diet.
The demand for milk and dairy products is income elastic, and growth in per capita income is expected to increase demand for milk and milk products. Empirical evidence has shown that the composition of an average Indian’s food basket is gradually shifting toward value-added products, including milk and dairy products.
The proportion of income spent on milk and milk products increased from 11.7 per cent in rural areas and 14.7 per cent in urban areas in 1970-71 to 21.6 and 16.7 per cent in 1999-00, respectively. Other socioeconomic and demographic factors, such as urbanization and changing food habits and lifestyles, have also reinforced growth in demand for dairy products.
On the supply side, technological progress in the production and processing sectors, institutional factors, and infrastructure play an equally important role. The linking of rural small producers with urban consumers through producers’ cooperatives was a true institutional innovation in the Indian dairy sector.
Given its high income elasticity, the demand for milk and dairy products is expected to grow rapidly. A study conducted using National Sample Survey (NSS) data for 1993-94 showed that income elasticity of demand for milk and milk products is higher (1.96 national level) in rural areas (ranging from 1.24 in Punjab to 2.92 in Odisha) than in urban areas (ranging from 0.99 in Punjab to 1.78 in Bihar). The northern region in general and Gujarat in the western region show low income elasticity of demand for milk and milk products.
The high values of income elasticity for different states in the eastern region-varying from 2.5 to 2.9 in rural areas and from 1.5 to 1.8 in urban areas-show a very strong preference for milk and milk products with an increase in income. Further increases in per capita income and changing consumption patterns would lead to acceleration in demand for milk and other livestock products in India and thus, would give a boost to this sector.
Essay # 5. Regional Patterns of Growth
in White Revolution:
There are large interregional and interstate variations in milk production as well as in per capita availability in India. About two-thirds of national milk production comes from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana. However, there have been some shifts in milk production shares of different states.
In 2001-02, Uttar Pradesh was the largest milk producer in the country with about 16.5 million tonnes of milk, followed by Punjab (8.4 million tonnes), Rajasthan (6.3 million tonnes), Madhya Pradesh (6.1 million tonnes), Maharashtra (6 million tonnes), and Gujarat (5.6 million tonnes).
During 1982-83 triennium ending (TE), the top five milk-producing states were Uttar Pradesh (18.5%), Punjab (10.1%), Rajasthan (9.8%), Gujarat (6.8%), and Haryana (6.6%). During TE 2001-02, Uttar Pradesh (19.5%), Punjab (9.9%), Rajasthan (7.5%), Maharashtra (7.3%), Madhya Pradesh (7.2%), and Gujarat (6.6%) were the largest producers.
The share of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Odisha increased between 1991 and 1999-01, while the share of Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal declined.
Major milk-producing regions in the country have good resource endowment and infrastructure. The eastern region is lagging behind in terms of dairy development. The government has initiated various dairy development programs, especially for the eastern and hilly regions.
There are also wide variations in per capita availability of milk in the country. The average per capita availability is lowest in the eastern region and highest in the northern region. The average per capita availability of milk during 2000-01 was highest in Punjab (997 gm/day), followed by Haryana (645 gm), Himachal Pradesh (354 gm), Rajasthan (300 gm), and Gujarat (296 gram).
Only 10 states had higher than the national average per capita availability of milk (220 gram/day). The per capita availability is low in the eastern and northeastern states. The average per capita consumption of milk and dairy products is lower in rural areas than in urban areas; even though milk is produced in rural areas.
Essay # 6. Policies Influencing the Dairy Sector
in White Revolution:
Agriculture, including the dairy sector, is state controlled, and state governments are primarily responsible for development of the sector. The central government supplements the efforts of the state governments through various schemes for achieving accelerated growth of the sector.
Despite the importance of dairying in the Indian economy, especially for the livelihoods of resource-poor farmers and landless labourers, government policy toward this sector has suffered from the lack of a clear and strong thrust and focus. The first attempt to conceive a set of policies for livestock development in India was the Royal Commission on Agriculture (1928). We can divide the government policies into three distinct phases; pre-Operation Flood, post-Operation Flood, and post-reform period.
One of the indicators of a sector’s importance is the budget allocation to that sector. The plan outlay (at current prices) of central and centrally sponsored schemes under animal husbandry and dairying has increased from Rs. 22 crores in the First Plan to Rs. 1,545.64 crores in the Ninth Plan and Rs. 2500 crores in the Tenth Plan.
The outlay for dairying increased from Rs. 781 crores in the First Plan to Rs. 900 crores in the Eighth Plan and then declined in the Ninth Plan to Rs. 469.5 crores (all figures are at current prices). The allocation to animal husbandry and dairying as a percentage of total plan outlay varied from 0.98 percent during the Fourth Flan to about 0.18 percent during the Ninth Plan.
However, in most cases the bulk of the budget is eaten up by wages and other administrative costs of the government departments. Although the dairy sector occupies a pivotal position and its contribution to the agricultural sector is the highest, the plan investment made so far does not appear commensurate with its contribution and future potential for growth and development.
The low productivity of Indian cattle has been the central concern of livestock policy throughout the last century. In the First Five Year Plan, the Key Village Scheme (KVS) was launched to improve breeding, feed and fodder availability, disease control, and milk production. To meet urban areas’ need for milk, the government promoted state-owned dairy plants to handle milk procurement, processing, and marketing.
In 1959, the government Delhi Milk Scheme (DMS) was set up to supply milk to the urban population of Delhi. This scheme adopted the method of departmental milk procurement from the milk-producing areas around Delhi by setting up its own milk collection and chilling centers. Though, the collection was started from small milk vendors initially, it ultimately ended up creating big contractors who purchased milk from the small vendors and supplied it in bulk to the milk scheme.
The same policies and strategies continued in the Second Five-Year Plan. In 1976, the National Commission on Agriculture concluded that the KVS could not meet its objectives because, due to a shortage of funds, it did not stress feed and fodder development and marketing of milk.
The Third Plan emphasized the need to develop dual-purpose animals for milk as well as draft use; crossbreeding of nondescript indigenous cattle was introduced during this plan. The Intensive Cattle Development Programme (ICDP) was launched in areas with high milk potential.
The disappointing performance of the dairy sector during the 1950s and 1960s concerned policy makers, and the Government of India undertook a far-reaching policy initiative. Dairy development through producers’ cooperatives and milk production based on milk sheds in the rural areas, modeled on the successful experience of dairy cooperatives in Gujarat, became the cornerstone of the new dairy sector policy. This policy initiative turned the Indian dairy sector around and led to all-around growth with several unarticulated spread effects.
The Government of India launched a massive dairy development program popularly known as Operation Flood (OF) from 1971 to 1996. The program was initially started with the help of the World Food Program (WFP) and later continued with dairy commodity assistance from the European Economic Community (EEC) and a soft loan/credit from the World Bank.
Under this programme, rural producers were organized into cooperatives so they would have an assured market, remunerative prices, and inputs and services for milk production enhancement, such as better feed and fodder, breed improvement through artificial insemination, and disease control measures.
The programme was unique in its approach in as much as the gift dairy commodities received by India under the programme were not consumed by free distribution but were used to manufacture liquid milk and funds thus generated were reinvested in rural areas in milk production enhancement activities. This coordinated and innovative effort has greatly increased milk production and ushered in a “White Revolution,” making India the world’s largest milk producer.
The programme was implemented in three phases: OF-I (1970-1981), OF-II (1981-85) and OF-III (1987-96). Operation Flood remained the pivot of government policy in the field of dairy development in India, and the number of city milk schemes and milk colonies begun in the 1950s and 1960s declined as the regional and national milk grids started operating under OF.
In metro areas, government milk schemes coexisted with the Mother Dairies run under the control of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB); however, the former kept selling milk at subsidized rates for long time for political reasons, and Mother Dairies introduced aggressive, modern milk marketing and distribution systems.
An indicator of the success of Operation Flood is the amount of milk procured and supplied to consumers. Average milk procurement increased from 2.56 million kg per day during Phase I to 11 million kg per day during Phase III. However, there are variations in the proportion of milk procured to total milk production across states. The striking pattern that emerges is the predominance of cooperatives in Gujarat and Maharashtra. Between Phase I and III, average liquid milk marketing increased from 27.8 lac liters per day to about 100 lac liters per day.
In 1989, the Government of India launched a Technology Mission on Dairy Development (TMDD) to coordinate the input programmes for the dairy sector, which ended in March 1999. An Integrated Dairy Development Programme (IDDP) in non-Operation Flood, hilly, and backward areas was launched as a Centrally Sponsored Plan Scheme during the Eighth Plan and continued during the Ninth and Tenth Plans.
To promote domestic production, India adopted an import-substitution strategy and protected the sector from external markets through means such as quantitative restrictions on imports and exports and canalization (restricting imports and exports through government or government designated agencies).
Competition within the organized sector was regulated through licensing provisions, which prohibited new entrants into the milk-processing sector. Milk powder and butter oil were available in the international market at lower prices, which made reconstitution of milk from these products cheaper than collecting and selling fresh milk. It was therefore necessary to restrict the availability of these cheap imports to encourage the indigenous production.
The third phase of Indian dairy policy started in the early 1990s, when the Government of India introduced major trade policy reforms that favoured increasing privatization and liberalization of the economy. The dairy industry was delicensed in 1991 with a view to encouraging private sector participation and investment in the sector. However, in response to sociopolitical pressures, the government introduced the Milk and Milk Products Order (MMPO) in 1992 under the Essential Commodities Act of 1955 to regulate milk and dairy product production.
The order required permission from state/central registration authorities to set up units handling more than 10,000 liters of milk per day or milk solids up to 500 tonnes per annum (TPA), depending on the capacity of the plant. The order included sanitary and hygienic regulations to ensure product quality. The status of registrations granted under the MMPO as of March 31, 2002.
However, concerns were raised about these government controls and licensing requirements for restricting large Indian and multinational players from making significant investments in this sector. The government has amended the MMPO from time to time; the major amendment was made in March 2002, when restrictions on setting up milk processing and milk product manufacturing plants were removed and the concept of milk shed was also abolished. This amendment is expected to facilitate the entry of large companies, which would definitely increase competition in the domestic markets.
The second major development in Indian dairy sector policy came when India signed the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture (URAA) in 1994 and became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which made India open up its dairy sector to world markets. The import and export of dairy products was delicensed and decanalized, and trade in dairy products was allowed freely, with certain inspection requirements.
The first major step was taken in 1994-95, when the import of skim milk powder (SMP) and butter oil was decanalized; restrictions on the remaining products were removed in April 2002. Moreover, there was a significant reduction in the import tariffs on dairy products after trade liberalization. However, India had bound its import tariffs for dairy products at low levels in the Uruguay Round schedules.
Essay # 7. Effects of the White Revolution
:
The white revolution gave a major boost to the dairy sector in India in the late 1960s by producing milk in rural areas through smallholder producer cooperatives and moving industrially- processed milk from these small holder sources to the urban demand centers, thus, establishing a much needed linkage between the rural producers and urban consumers. The United Nations has commended India’s “White Revolution,” saying a sharp increase in the production of milk has achieved twin goals of raising incomes of rural poor families and nutrition status of the people.
India’s milk production rose from around 30 million tonnes in 1980 to an estimated 87 million tonnes by 2003 and despite increasing population, availability per person rose from less than 50 kilo calories per day in 1980 to 80 kilo calories per day in 2000, a report on hunger by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said. The report forecasts that India’s dairy production will triple by 2020.
“With government policies that facilitate rural credit and provide essential support services to promote milk production, the White Revolution will continue to play a significant role in reducing poverty and hunger.”
FAO estimates that increasing milk production has boosted the incomes of 80 to 100 million families, the vast majority of whom are marginal or small farmers whose plots are often too small to support their families and landless laborers who depend on common grazing lands and forests for fodder.
Essay # 8. Matching Demand and Supply
of White Revolution:
The white revolution carried on the extensive dairy development programs on the supply side, and this coupled with the increasing demand for value added milk products on the consumer side along with the country’s population growth, increased urbanization and higher income, led to increased demand for milk.
The various other factors contributing to the growth in milk production are given below:
i. In the India diet, milk and milk products play a significant role.
ii. With a large lacto-vegetarian population, milk and dairy products are an important source of protein in diet.
iii. There is a perceptible shift towards the value- added food habits in which milk products form a large part.
iv. On the supply side, technological progress in the production and processing sectors, institutional factors and infrastructure played an important role.
Essay # 9. Milk Industry
and White Revolution:
After the White revolution, smaller enterprises and cooperatives, with whom, milk processing and product manufacturing were mainly restricted, were given protection by means of high import duties, non-tariff barriers, restrictions on import and export and stringent licensing provisions. This also provided supplementary employment and income among the small and marginal farming households and landless wage earners.
Before the White revolution started, the farmer’s income was derived almost entirely from seasonal crops. The income from milch buffaloes was undependable. Only private traders and middlemen gained as the marketing and distribution system was controlled by them. But currently, the scheme has ensured average returns of Rs. 1600 to Rs. 1700 per month, with the beneficiaries being mostly women.
The Amul project seeks to bring poor households into the mainstream economy by transforming dairying into active income generating enterprises. As many as 7500 below poverty line beneficiaries were targeted. The number has already been surpassed, and the project has already covered over 8000 beneficiaries.
All aspects of dairying have been exhaustively covered under the programme, in which innovations and modern technologies have been put to the best use for the rural population.
Essay # 10. White Revolution and Gender Revolution
:
The White revolution did not only affect the Indian Economy but the Indian social scenario as well. Traditionally, India’s dairy cooperative societies were run by men, but with time, this has gradually changed. Today, about 18% of cooperative members are women. Over 1000 women in Gujarat’s Sundarnagar district have proved that modern technologies can ameliorate the worries of poor rural women.
Gujarat in fact, spearheaded the ‘Operation Flood’ movement in the 1970s, which sought to maximize milk production and profits through scientific techniques and attempted to free milk producers from the tyranny of the middlemen. Today, several NGOs are working to change this scenario to be more inclusive of women. The Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), Ahmadabad, Gujarat was the first one to start the concept of all women dairy cooperatives in Banaskantha district.
Initially, women were hesitant about depositing milk with the dairy. But through intensive training sessions, they began to see the benefits of associating with the dairy. On an average, a woman is able to deposit one to two liters of milk per day. The women associated with the dairy say that it is not the higher price they get for their milk that makes them keep coming back.
There are other benefits, like bonus, payment every 10 days, information about fodder, mineral mixture and cattle health training. Bank accounts and transactions, as well as the day- to- day functioning of the cooperatives are operated entirely by women.
The women of these villages have developed an unshakeable faith in the machines. They are especially pleased with the measurement of fat content in milk. This helps them fix the price of the milk depending on its fat content, instead of the flat rate that the middlepersons gave them.
They have also learnt techniques to ensure better health for their cattle, through de- worming and mineral mixture. This, in turn, leads to increased fat content in milk. Further, artificial insemination – which the women can afford because of the profits that the cooperatives earn – results in a better breed of cattle.
From the above, we reach the conclusion that the White revolution has had a tremendous impact on the economic as well as the social life of the rural sector of India and has helped in the development of rural sector an established a linkage between the rural and the urban sector of India.
Essay # 11. Success of White Revolution
:
White revolution gave a major boost to the dairy sector in India in the late 1960s by producing milk in rural areas through smallholder producer cooperatives and moving industrially- processed milk from these small holder sources to the urban demand centers, thus, establishing a much needed linkage between the rural producers and urban consumers.
The White Revolution started in Gujarat and with its success over the years, other states have started implementing the concept of the White Revolution with a view to simultaneously improve and develop the economic and social parts of their rural sectors and linking them with their urban sectors.
Emulating the concept of Amul, Uttarakhand is preparing to bring in the white revolution through a new 10- point programme prepared by the agricultural minister. The first target of the government is to add 200 dairies with an addition of 40,000 liters of milk in order to make the hill state surplus.
Under this programme, the government has tied up with the Bank of Baroda to provide easy loans for buying cows and buffaloes and set up dairies. Once these dairies have been setup, the government will start buying milk and produce various dairy products through value- addition.
The state of Punjab is ushering a second white revolution by adopting modern dairy technology which is seen as a variable and profitable alternative. With the aim of providing the latest information about commercial dairy farming, the Punjab government has also started a new dairy technology course at five of its old centers and three new centers.
The state dairy development department also provides new techniques, better sheds, cattle breed and artificial insemination to the milk producers to increase milk production in the state. Financial help at very low rate of interest is being provided to candidates who successfully undertake training.
Punjab is the second largest milk producing state in India, producing eight million tonnes annually, which is around 10% of the country’s milk production.
After starting a White Revolution in the country and changing the way India consumes milk and its products, Amul is ready to start a second revolution. The cooperative milk giant is looking to double its milk production capacity by 2020. Years ago, the unique cooperative movement transformed India from an imports-dependent country to a self-sufficient one. Now, the demand for milk has increased with people’s purchasing power going up and Amul is hoping to meet this demand with its capacity expansion.
GCMMF, which markets all Amul products, expects its sales to shoot up to Rs. 27,000 crores in 2020 from an estimated Rs. 6,700 crores in 2008-09. To achieve the 2020 target, Amul will increase the capacities of the existing 30 dairy plants and add some new ones.
Essay # 12. Criticisms
of White Revolution:
Some critics of the project argue that the emphasis on foreign cow breeds has been instrumental in the decimation of Indian breeds. Foreign breeds give higher yields, but require more feed and are not suited to Indian conditions. Critics also argue that the focus on the dairy sector during this period came at the expense of development, research, and extension work in other areas of Indian agriculture.
There is also the criticism that the product from the White Revolution, namely milk and dairy products (like food grains from the harvests using Green Revolution methods and practices) is qualitatively, not exactly’ technically’, inferior to the product obtained employing traditional methods and practices geared to smaller population levels which had only to be ‘scaled up’ for larger populations.
Moreover, the developed countries’ heavy subsidies on dairy products pose an obstruction to the Indian Dairy growth. The distortion of global dairy prices due to heavy subsidies by the European Union and the U.S.A, besides other developed countries, has rendered Indian Dairy products non-competitive in the international market.
There has been a consistent rise in India’s share in world milk production —from 9.9 per cent in 1990 to 12.3 per cent in 1996 and further to 14.5 per cent in 2003. India is now the world’s largest milk producer. However, the opening up of the Indian market to foreign goods has raised much concern about the status of the Indian dairy industry in the post-WTO era.
In the end, we may conclude by saying that though every concept has its loopholes and drawbacks, the concept of the White Revolution is relatively much more beneficial. 60 years ago when the concept of White Revolution first came into existence, prior to that, the Indian dairy sector had a very low productivity rate. But after this concept was introduced, it brought about a revolution in the dairy sector.
The productivity rate increased and it opened new employment avenues for the rural sector. It further contributed to the empowerment of women. It helped in removing the middlemen, thus, establishing a link between the rural and the urban sector. It came as a relief to the landless farmers and farmers with smaller lands which were inadequate for farming.
Thus, it may be said that the white revolution has contributed a lot to the Indian economy and more of such innovative ideas must be brought in light so as to ensure the quick development of the rural and the urban sector and furthermore, of the country as a whole.