Government to give Rs 703 crore to states under intensive dairy development programme

KOLKATA: The department of animal husbandry dairying and fisheries has been implementing a credit linked central sector scheme ' Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme' (DEDS) under which financial assistance is provided for purchase of dairy processing equipment for manufacture of indigenous milk products.

Under the scheme, 25 per cent of the unit cost (33.33 per cent for SC/ST farmers) as back ended capital subsidy subject to a ceiling of Rs 3.00 lakh(Rs 4.00 lakh for SC/ST farmers) is provided under bankable projects through National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).

Financial assistance is also provided for Dairy Development under Strengthening Infrastructure for quality and clean milk production and states can also avail financial assistance for this purpose under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yajana.

The 'Intensive Dairy Development Programme', a centrally sponsored scheme has been implemented across the country in hilly and backward districts and other districts where investment was less than Rs 50 lakh in Operation Flood Programme on 100 per cent grant-in-aid basis.