With hold over dairy co-ops, BJP eyes pole position

THE CASH-RICH MILK cooperatives in Gujarat are likely to have a significant bearing on nearly 50 percent of the 93 seats bound for the second phase of the state Assembly polls on December 5.

These cooperatives, earlier run by functionaries aligned with the Congress, are now controlled by leaders affiliated to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party BJP).

Banas Dairyin Banaskantha district, which is the biggest milk co-operative in Gujarat, and four other top co-operative dairies in Mehsana, Anand, Sabarkantha and Panchmahal districts together account for 75 percent of the total 280 lakh litres of milk procured daily by the GCMMF.

In October this year, the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation GCMMF), an umbrella body of the state’s dairy cooperative unions, hiked the prices of Amul brand of milk by Rs 2 per litre for all its markets except Gujarat, which drew criticism from West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee, who accused the BJP of allegedly indulging in vote bank politics”.

The GCMMF’s managing director RS Sodhi had then told The Indian Express that the milk sold outside Gujarat was already subsidised and that the hike was to bring its prices on par with the state home toAmuland to cover the freight costs. The GCMMF comprises of 18 district cooperative milk producers unions, which are made up of the members of the village dairy co-operatives in each district.