The Animal Husbandry Department in the district will soon pick up the Model Dairy Man (MDM) and Model Dairy Woman (MDW) in Kottur panchayat under a pilot scheme, Mission Safe Milk Kottur which is aimed at improving the quality of milk and dairying.
The best performers will be selected from various farming clusters, which will be formed soon. Project coordinators say the scheme aims to cover maximum number of farmers under the five regional dairy cooperative societies in the panchayat, and give scientific and field support to help them meet modern quality parameters. “What we aim is the production of antibiotic-free and residue-free milk by modernising every facet of dairying,” they say.
The Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Centre for One Health Education Advocacy Research and Training (COHEART), and the Kerala Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Milma) are chipping in. A centre for the production of value-added products and a unit for handling health-related issues in the dairy sector too are envisaged.
Panchayat president Sheeja Karangott and veterinary surgeon from Kottur Veterinary Dispensary P.P. Bineesh say the Mission Safe Milk project will contribute a great deal in improving the sanitation and hygiene standards in milk production, and the personal hygiene of dairy farmers.
Panchayat authorities say the promotion of a Kottur-model portable milking parlour, health check-up for milkers, distribution of basic hygiene accessories and close monitoring of various diseases in livestock are some of the highlights of the project. It is a model panchayat scheme approved for implementation during the 2016-17 fiscal, they point out.
Minister for Excise and Labour T.P. Ramakrishnan will inaugurate the project at Kottur on Saturday.
