On the second day of his three-day visit to his home State, the PM reached Deodar in Banaskantha to open the new plants at Banas Dairy, which is a division of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) under the Government of Gujarat’s Ministry of Cooperation. Mr. Modi interacted with women milk suppliers and farmers in a move to reconnect with the masses ahead of the State Assembly polls later this year.
The new dairy complex has the capacity to process about 30 lakh litres of milk, and produce about 80 tonnes of butter, 20 tonnes of condensed milk, one lakh litres of ice cream and six tonnes of chocolate per day.
The potato processing plant will produce different types of processed potato products such as chips, aloo tikki, fries, and patties, many of which will be exported in other countries.
“The new development initiatives at Banas Dairy will empower farmers, women, and boost the rural economy. We can experience how cooperative movement can give strength to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat campaign,” the PM said, addressing a huge gathering of women milk suppliers and farmers.
Mr. Modi profusely praised the efforts of local communities and the cooperative dairy sector in creating livelihood opportunities for locals in the water-starved district in north Gujarat.
“I would like to applaud the people of Banaskantha for their hard work and spirit of resilience. The manner in which this district has made a mark in agriculture is commendable. Farmers embraced new technologies, focused on water conservation and the results are for all to see,” he tweeted after the event.
During his speech, Mr. Modi said the development taking place in Gujarat fills one with sense of pride as what happens in Gujarat is followed by the people of other States.
He also mentioned his visit to the state-of-the-art command and control centre of the State Education Department on Monday evening, where he interacted with teachers and officials involved in new measures to improve the quality of education in the State. The new command and control centre has connected all schools in the State with real time monitoring of students and teachers, teaching work, attendance, etc., from State capital Gandhinagar.
