The State government will soon convene a meeting of the heads of all cooperative milk unions to resolve the issue of delay in paying Rs four per litre of milk incentive to farmers, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Friday.
Replying to the issue in the Assembly, the chief minister said he would hold the meeting within a week to ensure that the farmers get their money. “If necessary, interest-free loans will be extended to the milk unions so that they can clear the dues to the farmers” he added.
Animal Husbandry Minister T B Jayachandra said that the government had released Rs 228 crore to the unions towards paying incentives to the farmers. But the unions have not paid the money to the farmers. Appropriate steps will be taken in this regard, he added.
JD(S) leader H D Revanna, who raised the issue, said milk producers across the State had not received the incentive since January 2015. “Milk unions have been claiming that they are incurring loss due to excess production of milk in the State. As many as 65 lakh litres of milk is being produced every day in the State against the daily consumption of about 45 lakh litres,” he added.
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