President of India Droupadi Murmu addressed the 19th convocation of the ICAR–National Dairy Research Institute (ICAR-NDRI) at Karnal, Haryana today.
Speaking at the occasion, the President said that the dairy industry plays an important role in ensuring the food and nutritional security of our country. The dairy sector also contributes about 5 per cent to the country’s GDP and provides livelihood to about 8 crore families in India. Hence, institutions like NDRI have an important role to play in the inclusive development of the country.
The President said that cows and other livestock have been an integral part of Indian society and traditions. She was happy to note that NDRI has developed technology to produce clones of high milk-yielding buffaloes and cows. She said that it would increase the milk production capacity of the animals and enhance the farmers’ income.
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The President said that milk and milk products have always been an integral part of Indian food and culture. India is the largest milk-producing country in the world. But, we are facing the challenges of increasing demand for milk products. Apart from this, the dairy sector is also facing challenges like the availability of good quality fodder, change in weather due to climate change and diseases in livestock. Making milk production and dairy farming sustainable is a challenge for us. It is the responsibility of all of us to develop the dairy industry by adopting environment-friendly and climate-smart technologies, keeping animal welfare in mind. She was happy to note that the top dairy research body is promoting various technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from dairy farms. Along with this, NDRI is also emphasising clean energy like biogas production.
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The President said that women are playing an important role in the management of the dairy industry in India. This sector can play a very important role in making women self-reliant. Therefore, there is a need to provide them with more opportunities in education, training and skill development. Women should also be provided easy loans and market access to set up ventures in the dairy sector.
