A road to progress

(MAINS GS-1& GS-3: Role of women and women’s organization&issues of buffer stocks and food security; Technology missions; economics of animal-rearing.

Context:

• The achievements of women dairy farmers in contributing to India’s ‘White Revolution’ is a testament to the success of the dairy cooperative models that were at the heart of Operation Flood.

Women’s Contribution in Dairy Value chains:

• There are more than 1,90,000 dairy cooperative societies across the country, with approximately 6 million women members.
• A Study by International Development Research Centre indicates that 93% of women farmers who receive training with financial support succeed in their venture, compared to the 57% success rate of those who receive financial aid alone.
• By Institutionalizing such inputs (the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) now organizes farmer’s orientation programme across the country) under which women farmers are trained in scientific best practices on animal health, fodder quality, clean milk production and account management.

Encourage overall development:

• A study conducted on Women Dairy Cooperative Society (WDCS) members across Rajasthan showed that with the income generated through dairying, 31% of the women had converted their mud houses to cement structures, while 39% had constructed concrete sheds for their cattle.
• Women led cooperatives also provide fertile ground for grooming women from rural areas for leadership positions.
• The presence of collectives in the form of cooperatives and milk unions plays a significant role in enhancing the knowledge and bargaining power of women.

Women-led producer enterprises

• NDDB has played a proactive role in setting up women-led producer enterprises like ShreejaMahila Milk Producer Company with an annual turnover of approximately 450 crores.
• Last year, Amul Dairy released a list of 10 women dairy farmers who became millionaires by selling milk to the company.

Conclusion:

• Innovation in organizational structures has spurred consistent growth in dairy sector.
• Many of female dairy farmers have not had a formal education, but through the process of dairying and working with larger collectives, such as milk unions and cooperatives, they have mastered the nuances of finance and marketing.
• Thus, by providing credit and institutional support women can not only earn their livelihood but also empowered themselves to leading roles.