Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu laid the foundation stone for a state-of-the-art milk processing plant with a capacity of 1.50 lakh liters per day (LLPD) in Dhagwar, Kangra district today. He said that the plant’s initial processing capacity of 1.50 LLPD can be expanded to 3 LLPD in the future. Once operational, the Dhagwar Milk Processing Plant will significantly strengthen the economy of farmers in Kangra, Mandi, Hamirpur, Chamba, and Una districts, benefiting over 35,000 milk producers.
“In addition to boosting the incomes of milk producers, the plant will create employment opportunities in milk collection, processing, quality control, and distribution. It will also generate indirect jobs in sectors such as transportation, supply chain management, and maintenance services,” he added.
The Chief Minister said that the entire funding for the construction of this plant was being provided by the State Government, which will be completed by February 2026. He mentioned that once the processing plant becomes operational, farmers will receive payments of Rs 40 lakh daily. He said that after the increase in milk rates, Milkfed’s daily milk procurement has risen from 1,40,000 liters to 2,10,000 liters.
The advanced milk processing plant will process 1.50 lakh liters of milk daily, producing a wide range of dairy products, including curd, lassi, butter, ghee, cheese, flavored milk, khoya, and mozzarella cheese. He also said that the capacity of the milk processing plant in Duttnagar, Shimla district, has been increased from 20,000 liters to 70,000 liters per day at a cost of Rs. 25.67 crore.
This enhanced capacity is benefiting dairy farmers in Shimla, Kullu, Mandi, and Kinnaur districts, with around 20,000 farmers associated with 271 dairy cooperative societies reaping the rewards. Sh. Sukhu said that strengthening the rural economy was a top priority of the present state government.
To ensure more money reaches in the hands of rural people, the Government has increased the minimum support price of cow’s milk from Rs. 32 to Rs. 45 per liter and buffalo’s milk from Rs. 47 to Rs. 55 per liter. He said that the State Government is making earnest efforts over the past two years to make Himachal Pradesh a self-reliant and one of the most prosperous states in the country.
The Chief Minister said that it was for the first time that 4,000 metric tonnes of maize produced through natural farming was purchased at Rs. 30 per kg, and from the next season, wheat will be procured at Rs. 40 per kg. He also said that the State Government has made a historic increase of Rs. 60 in the wages under the MGNREGA scheme, raising daily wages to Rs. 300 for workers.
Agriculture Minister Chander Kumar, Vice Chairman of the State Planning Board Bhawani Singh Pathania, Deputy Chief Whip Kewal Singh Pathania, MLAs Sudarshan Bablu and Ashish Butail, Chief Minister’s IT Advisor Gokul Butail, Chairman of Kangra Cooperative Primary Agricultural and Rural Development Bank Ram Chander Pathania, former MP Viplov Thakur, former MLA Surendra Kaku, APMC Chairman Nishu Mongra, Congress leaders Devender Singh and Karn Pathania, NDDB Chairman Minesh Shah, Mayor Municipal Corporation Dharamsala Neena Sharma, Secretary Ritesh Chauhan, Managing Director, H.P. Milkfed Vikas Sood, other dignitaries were present on the occasion.