Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Thursday defended the decision to increase the price of Nandini milk by Rs 8 per litre, and said it was aimed at preventing losses to farmers.
“The demand for a milk price hike has been there for the last couple of years. The price has been increased to prevent losses to farmers. “There is a high demand for Nandini ghee for Mysore Pak and other products. The government is also providing financial incentives to farmers.
Because of the lower prices in Karnataka, he said the government needed to prevent milk from being routed to Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. Because farmers were facing losses,” he said, this decision was taken. Earlier reporting noted: The minister said that currently, farmers in Karnataka receive around Rs 35 per litre, in addition to the government’s incentive of Rs 5 per litre. Earlier reporting noted: The Karnataka Cabinet on Thursday decided to hike milk prices by Rs 8 per litre, Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said. Earlier reporting noted: He said Rs 7 would go to farmers and Re 1 to the cooperatives. The price hike will be effective from November 1.
Speaking to reporters here, Shivakumar said the government had taken the decision after consultations, as the cost of milk production and transportation had increased. The government is helping farmers, and farmers are important to us,” he said. The chief minister said milk prices in Karnataka were lower than those in several neighbouring states, adding that the price difference had also led to milk being diverted to other states. On the possibility of an increase in bus fares, the chief minister said the state transport corporations had suffered heavy losses and were facing financial difficulties.
