Acute shortage of green fodder due to severe drought has hit milk production in Ariyalur district.
It is one of the four districts attached to the Tiruchi District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union. On an average, the union procures about 3 lakh litres of milk from members of Tiruchi, Perambalur, Ariyalur and Karur districts. Ariyalur district accounts for about 75,000 litres a day.
According to sources, the procurement from suppliers in thedistrict has come down by about 10% mainly due to acute shortage of green fodder and heavy demand for dry fodder.
Cattle growers say there is absolutely no green fodder as grazing grounds have completely dried up because of severe drought. Despite taking the cattle for grazing to long distances, they could not find pasture. Many farmers, who have pump sets, cannot grow grass as the bore wells have gone dry.
“On normal days, I get 12 litres of milk from my cattle, seven in the morning and five in the evening per day. However, it has come down to 8 litres per day,” says T. Ganesan, a cattle grower of T. Sathamangalam near Thirumanur.
He said commercial feed was not complete feed for cattle. It could merely play the role of supplementary feed along with green or dry fodder. The cows did not get to eat well even if they grazed from dawn to dusk. He had not come across such a worst situation in the last three decades.
Mr. Ganesan added that there was a severe shortage of drinking water as almost all lakes and ponds in Thirumanur and T. Palur blocks had dried up completely. Cattle growers were struggling to feed water to cattle.
M. Nazir, Joint Director of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, told The Hindu that the department had set up depots at Andimadam, Senthurai, Periavalayam, Ariyalur and T. Palur to sell dry fodder. A sum to the tune of ₹91 lakh had been allotted to the district for supply of dry fodder to the cattle growers. It had so far sold 655 tonnes of paddy straw to the cattle growers.
While the department spent ₹8.99 for one kg of paddy straw, it was sold to the farmers at just ₹2 per kg in order to ensure sufficient fodder for the cattle. Sorgham grass had been raised on 150 acres in the district. It was ready for the harvest. The fodder would be made available to the farmers within a few days, the official said.
