Government Strengthens Dairy and Livestock Sector Through Infrastructure, Digital Reforms and Veterinary Services

The Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying informed Parliament that the Government is undertaking multiple measures to strengthen the dairy and livestock sector. There is no proposal to introduce a Minimum Support Price for milk; prices remain market‑driven by cooperatives and private dairies. The Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) is financing dairy and meat processing units, feed plants and related infrastructure, with 113 projects in Maharashtra approved for ₹4,700.13 crore and an interest subvention of ₹123.46 crore. The National Digital Livestock Mission assigns a 12‑digit Tag ID to each animal and records vaccination, breeding and treatment data using AES‑256 encryption, though Mobile Veterinary Units are not yet linked to the portal. Existing schemes such as the National Livestock Mission, Livestock Health and Disease Control Programme and AHIDF aim to boost production, farmer incomes and rural employment.