Maharashtra village does not sell milk, gives it to those in need

Claiming to be descendants of Lord Krishna, residents of a village in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district do not sell milk and instead give it away for free to those in need.

While farmers and leaders in the State agitated for a hike in milk prices earlier this month, residents of Yelegaon Gawali, where most of the households own cattle, have never sold milk.

“The name of our village [Yelegaon Gawali] means the ‘village of milkmen’. We consider ourselves descendants of Lord Krishna and hence, we do not sell milk,” said Rajabhau Mandade, 60, one of the residents of the village.

Although 90% of the houses in the village have cattle, none of the residents sell milk and the tradition has been followed for generations, he added.

In case of excess production, different milk products are made, but none of it sold and are distributed for free to people in need, Mr. Mandade said.

“The festival of Janmashtami is celebrated on a large scale in the village, which has a Krishna temple. However, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, all functions have been cancelled,” he said.

Shaikh Kausar, the sarpanch of the village, said the tradition of not selling milk has been followed by all villagers irrespective of their religion.

“None of the villagers, whether Hindus, Muslims or those belonging to other religions, sell milk from their cattle,” Mr. Kausar said. At least 90% of the 550 households own cows, buffaloes and some even have goats, he said.