Shimla, March 31 The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to process surplus milk into ghee and sell it at affordable rates to boost the dairy industry in the state and ensure timely payments to milk-selling farmers, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Tuesday.
Responding to a question from BJP MLA Satpal Singh Satti in the Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly), Sukhu said the government would clear all outstanding dues owed to milk producers for February and March next month.
He also announced that the government is establishing a state-of-the-art milk processing plant at Dagwar in the Kangra district.
Following the increase in milk prices implemented by the Himachal Pradesh government, milk production has witnessed a significant surge, and as a result, the government now has a surplus of milk.
For the first time, producers have developed a genuine inclination to adopt milk production as a viable means of livelihood, he said, and added that rather than selling this surplus milk to other states, the government has decided to process it into ghee and sell it at affordable rates.
Taking a dig at the previous BJP government, he observed that prior to this, no one bothered about this sector, nor had officials ever offered any suggestions regarding it.
The proposed Dagwar plant is expected to become operational by October 2026. Once this plant becomes functional, the entire milk produced within the state will be consumed and processed locally.
Earlier, Agriculture Minister Chandra Kumar stated that the number of milk producers in the state has increased, and therefore, the existing milk processing plants are unable to process the entire volume, compelling the government to sell the surplus milk to organizations such as Mother Dairy and Amul.
He said that the plant currently under construction at Dagwar will have the capacity to process approximately 4.5 lakh liters of milk daily. He further affirmed that the government is continuously working to increase the number of milk chilling and processing plants across the state.
Responding to a query raised by Lahaul-Spiti MLA Anuradha Rana, Minister for Youth Services and Sports Yadvinder Gomma said that the Himachal government is considering granting state-level recognition to ice hockey.
He said that the construction of an ice hockey rink in Kaza, at a cost of Rs 73.77 crore, is set to commence shortly, as the necessary procedural formalities have already been completed.
Replying to a question from MLA Puran Chand Thakur, Public Works Minister Vikramaditya Singh said that the decision to shift the PWD division from Thalout in Mandi district to Pandoh was an administrative one, and the government arrived at this decision after careful deliberation.
He said that while the division in Thalout was operating out of a rented building, it has now been relocated to a government-owned building in Pandoh. He further emphasized that the relocation of this office was driven entirely by administrative considerations and involved absolutely no political motives.