With opposition parties latching on the Amul vs Nandini row in the poll-bound Karnataka and the leaders of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party(BJP) making statements that the Amul is not entering the state, the proposition to not enter Karnataka is more of economics than politics.
The political slugfest began after Gujarat-based cooperative society Amul tweeted: “A new wave of freshness with milk and curd is coming to Bengaluru. More information coming soon. #LaunchAlert. From Kengeri to Whitefield, wishing everyone a Taaza day.”
In another tweet, the dairy brand said, “The #Amul family is bringing in some Taaza into #Bengaluru city. More updates coming in soon. #LaunchAlert. Taaza arriving soon in Bengaluru.”
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The Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) Ltd may find it hard to get a foothold in Karnataka as Karnataka Cooperative Milk Producers’ Federation Limited (KMF) which is the second largest dairy co-operative amongst the dairy cooperatives in the country and in South India it stands first in terms of procurement as well as sales. The KMF which sells milk under the ‘Nandini’ brand is one of the cheapest milk in the country. A comparison shows that consumers purchasing one litre of toned milk have to shell out ₹39 in Bengaluru whereas for Amul sells one litre of toned milk for ₹52 in Gujarat and ₹54 in Delhi.
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A litre of full cream milk costs ₹66 in Delhi and ₹64 in Gujaratwhile the the ‘Nandini’ brand full cream mil costs ₹ ₹24 for 450 ml and ₹50 for 900 ml. A kg of curd under the Nandini brand is available for ₹47 per kg whereas it costs around ₹67 for per kg of curd under Amul. KMF is able to supply milk at a such low price as it gets subsidies from the government. The Karnataka government has given around ₹12,00 crore incentives annually according to reports.
KMF has 16 Milk Unions covering all the districts of the State which procure milk from Primary Dairy Cooperative Societies(DCS) and distribute milk to the consumers in various Towns/Cities/Rural markets in Karnataka.
Amul’s move is being seen by many, especially opposition parties, as a threat to KMF’s famed dairy brand ‘Nandini’. They also see it as an attempt to trample upon KMF, amid a narrative around its merger with Amul. “Is your purpose of coming to Karnataka to give to Karnataka or to loot from Karnataka? You have already stolen banks, ports and airports from Kannadigas. Are you now trying to steal Nandini (KMF) from us?” Siddaramaiah asked.
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Karnataka Dairy Development Cooperation(KDDC), the first ever World Bank/ International Development Agency funded Dairy Development Program in the country started in Karnataka on co-operative lines with the organisation of Village Level Dairy Co-operatives in 1974.
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The AMUL pattern of dairy co-operatives started functioning in Karnataka from 1974-75 with the financial assistance from World Bank/IDA, Operation Flood II & III. The Anand Pattern three tier organisation structure – Dairy Cooperative Societies at the village level, District Milk Unions at the District level to take care of the procurement, processing and marketing of milk and provide technical input services for enhancing milk production at producers level and Federation at the state level to co-ordinate the growth of the sector in the State, are resolutely and harmoniously working hand-in-hand in creating self-sustaining rural economy based on cooperative dairying. KMF is one of the few federations in the country, who have converted dairying from a subsidiary occupation into an industry.
