Government Strengthens Dairy and Livestock Sector Through Infrastructure, Breed Improvement and Entrepreneurship Initiatives
New Delhi, India | August 2026 – The Government of India has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening the dairy and livestock sectors through investments in dairy infrastructure, genetic improvement, entrepreneurship promotion, and animal health programmes. The update was shared by Rajiv Ranjan Singh in the Lok Sabha.
The government highlighted significant progress under key flagship schemes, including the National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF), Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), National Livestock Mission (NLM), and the Livestock Health and Disease Control Programme (LHDCP).
No Reports of Unremunerative Milk Procurement Prices
The Minister informed Parliament that milk procurement prices continue to be determined by dairy cooperatives and private dairies based on prevailing market conditions.
The Department has not received any reports indicating that dairy farmers are being denied remunerative prices due to differences between procurement and retail milk prices.
Dairy Infrastructure Continues to Expand
As of June 2026, the National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) has:
- Organised 36,611 new Dairy Cooperative Societies.
- Strengthened 34,557 village-level dairy cooperative societies.
- Created approximately 168 lakh litres per day of milk chilling capacity.
- Distributed 76,748 milk quality testing devices to improve quality assurance across the dairy value chain.
Meanwhile, projects approved under the Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) have added a proposed 418 lakh litres per day of milk processing and value-addition capacity.
The government also noted that the Milk Supply Review Dashboard Portal, integrated with the National Cooperative Database, currently reflects three active dairy cooperative societies in Delhi.
Rashtriya Gokul Mission Enhances Indigenous Breeds
The Rashtriya Gokul Mission continues to drive genetic improvement and productivity enhancement of indigenous cattle breeds.
Over the past three years, Tamil Nadu received ₹12,521.83 lakh in central assistance, enabling:
- 36.13 lakh artificial inseminations
- Strengthening of four semen stations
- Training of 475 MAITRIs
- Establishment of two IVF laboratories
- Development of sex-sorted semen facilities
- Creation of three Breed Multiplication Farms
- Support for Heifer Rearing Centres
Nationally, the programme has achieved:
- 17.27 crore artificial inseminations over the past five years.
- Benefits reaching nearly 5.98 crore farmers.
- Training of 47,687 MAITRIs.
- Establishment of 24 IVF laboratories.
- Approval of 48 semen stations and 28 heifer rearing centres.
Livestock Mission Promotes Entrepreneurship
The National Livestock Mission has approved:
- 4,084 breed multiplication farms
- Production of 1.61 lakh metric tonnes of quality fodder seed
- Sanctioning of 204 silage and Total Mixed Ration (TMR) units
Under the Entrepreneurship Development Programme, authorities have sanctioned:
- 4,291 projects
- Total project investment of ₹2,956.79 crore
- Approved subsidies worth ₹1,356.53 crore
The initiative is expected to create approximately 21,000 direct jobs while indirectly benefiting around 91,000 farmers. The programme operates through a fully digital platform integrated with the Public Finance Management System (PFMS) for transparent subsidy disbursement.
Strengthening Animal Health Preparedness
The government also highlighted continued investments in animal disease prevention and emergency preparedness.
Large-scale vaccination programmes against Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Brucellosis, Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), and Classical Swine Fever (CSF) remain ongoing under the Livestock Health and Disease Control Programme.
In addition, the national mock exercise Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas (PYA), conducted in Madhya Pradesh from 29 June to 3 July 2026, successfully enhanced preparedness for zoonotic disease outbreaks by improving surveillance systems, biosafety protocols, laboratory coordination, emergency response mechanisms, and inter-agency collaboration.
Outlook
The government’s latest update reflects a comprehensive strategy to modernize India’s dairy and livestock sectors through infrastructure expansion, scientific breeding, entrepreneurship development, and robust animal health systems. With continued investment in dairy cooperatives, processing capacity, and disease control, these initiatives are expected to strengthen farmer incomes, improve productivity, and support sustainable growth across the livestock value chain.