The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved the revised National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) with an increased outlay of ₹2,790 crore.

The initiative, aimed at modernising India's dairy sector, received an additional allocation for the 15th Finance Commission cycle (2021-22 to 2025-26).

The government has added an extra ₹1,000 crore to the scheme to strengthen dairy infrastructure and improve milk production and quality.

“The revised program focuses on helping dairy farmers by improving milk procurement, processing, and quality control,” according to the Cabinet.

The scheme also includes the formation of new dairy cooperative societies and better support for milk processing in remote areas, particularly in the Northeast, hilly regions, and Union Territories. It aims to give farmers better access to markets, ensuring they get fair prices and boosting rural development.

The NPDD has benefited over 18.74 lakh farmers and created more than 30,000 jobs. It has also helped increase milk procurement capacity by over 100 lakh litres per day.

“Advanced technology has been introduced for milk testing and quality control, with over 51,777 village-level testing labs strengthened and more than 5,000 bulk milk coolers installed,” the Cabinet said.

Under the revised scheme, the government plans to establish 10,000 new Dairy Cooperative Societies and two Milk Producer Companies (MPCs).

“The initiative is expected to create an additional 3,20,000 jobs, with a major focus on benefiting women, who make up 70% of the dairy workforce,” it added.

The programme will also support cooperation between India and Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to improve dairy infrastructure in nine states, including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.