Private suppliers smile as Nagpur Dairy closes down

24-04-14

* As against the supply of 15,000 litres of milk daily to Nagpur, now ‘Aarey’ brand supply has come down only to around 6,000 litres a day and that too from Wardha
* Non-homogenised ‘Aarey’ milk is being supplied at higher price to Nagpur since April 1

By Kartik Lokhande 

One’s adversity could be another’s opportunity. This is proving true in case of milk supply. Since the handing over of Government Dairy at Nagpur to Mother Dairy from April 1, the supply of ‘Aarey’ brand of milk to Nagpur has been affected. And, this has proven to be an opportunity for private suppliers.
In October 2013, Maharashtra Cabinet had decided to provide about 10 acres of land of Government Dairy at Nagpur to Central Government’s Mother Dairy on 30-years lease to increase milk output. Accordingly, from April 1, Government Dairy at Nagpur closed down. However, sources said, Mother Dairy is yet to start production. With ‘Aarey’ brand of milk going out of supply, and Mother Dairy brand yet to enter the market to the desired extent, private supplies happily grabbed their share in Nagpur market.
Meanwhile, sources added, people insisted on ‘Aarey’ brand of milk at some centres in the city. The dealers who supplied milk at these centres were in a fix. Following this, the Dairy Development Department authorities here decided to augment the supply of ‘Aarey’ brand of milk from Government Dairy at Wardha. However, as there is no ‘homogeniser’ at Wardha, ‘Aarey’ brand of milk supplied to Nagpur has been ‘non-homogenised’ since April 1. Besides, this affected supply of adequate quantity of ‘Aarey’ milk to Nagpur. Further, the dealers who had placed a demand for this particular brand of milk arranged for transport of milk packets from Wardha to Nagpur and loaded this additional cost on the consumers. As a result, the consumers got this brand of milk at higher price.
Asked about this, Dairy Development Manager (Nagpur) A R Pajankar confirmed to ‘The Hitavada’ that closure of Government Dairy at Nagpur had resulted in private suppliers increasing their share in Nagpur. “As against the per day supply of 15,000 litres of ‘Aarey’ milk to Nagpur previously, now only around 5,000 litres is being supplied. For this too, dealers have made transport arrangement,” he said. According to him, Mother Dairy was yet to become operational and it might take around six months more for it to become fully operational with new equipment.
According to Dairy Manager (Wardha) D R Lakhe, around 6,000 litres of ‘Aarey’ milk was being supplied to Nagpur per day. He admitted that there was no homogeniser at Wardha plant. “We had informed the public in advance that non-homogenised milk would be supplied till homogeniser was installed at Wardha plant. Today itself, we have sent a vehicle to get the equipment from Nashik. By the end of this month, homogeniser will be installed and homogenised milk will be supplied from May 1,” he told ‘The Hitavada’ on Thursday.
It is learnt from sources that Mother Dairy is trying to source milk from Bhandara and nearby areas to start supply as soon as possible. Also, it is trying to get the milk packaging done at private units around Nagpur. “This would provide breathing space till the time it becomes fully operational,” said a source familiar with the developments.

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