TIRUPATI: Fulfilling his promise made to the farmers and the people of Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy will lay the foundation stone for the revival of Chittoor cooperative dairy, popularly known as the Vijaya dairy, on July 4.
The Chittoor dairy which was once touted as the second biggest dairy in the country became defunct for various reasons and was permanently shut down with hundreds of crores of rupees in debt to the farmers in 2002.
The hopes of thousands of farmers was dashed with the sudden closure of the dairy without any notice.
In the run up to the 2019 general elections, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy promised to revive the Chittoor dairy once the YSRCP comes to power in the state.
To take forward the promise made to the people of Chittoor, the Andhra Pradesh state government inked an MoU with Anand milk union limited (Amul) in 2020, to infuse a new lease of life in the cooperative dairy sector in the state to benefit the dairy farmers.
In the meantime, the AP government also launched the "Jagananna Pala Velluva" to empower women self help groups.
According to the government sources, about 3.07 lakh women empanelled in about 3551 SHG groups have procured 8.78 lakh litres of milk in the last two years.
The state government has also initiated measures to set up more than 4700 bulk milk cooling units across the state to benefit the farmers.
YSRCP's Rajampet MP PV Midhun Reddy told TOI that the revival of the Chittoor dairy would be a game-changer for the farmers who would be assured remunerative prices for every litre of milk.
In fact, the farmers and women SHGs are already reaping notable financial benefits with a reasonable spike in the milk prices offered to them ever since the launch of the Jagananna Pala Velluva scheme by Chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
The Rajampet MP added that through the revival of the Chittoor dairy with the cooperation of Amul, about 25 lakh farmers would benefit in Chittoor district alone.
With Amul set to invest Rs.385 crore to revive the Chittoor dairy by establishing the biggest icecream plant in the country here apart from launching the production of various dairy products, direct employment to 5000 people and indirect employment to more than 2 lakh people is assured.
Meanwhile, the Chittoor district administration led by collector Sagili Shan Mohan under the supervision of minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy reviewed the arrangements for the Chief minister's visit scheduled to the district for laying the foundation stone for the Chittoor dairy revival programme on July 4.
