Unparalleled Participation of Women in the Growth of Dairy Industry
Women in India today are no more the pain bearers. They have sustained the orthodoxy of the society and have come up front with the issues of inequality as against men. Gone are the days when women were not allowed to step out of the house while today they are the major frontrunners in nearly all the fields, be it business or education. And indisputably, they’ve been doing great which is evident from their contribution and achievements in different fields.
So are the rural women who have been a massive inexorable force behind the evolution and prosperity of Indian Dairy Industry. The size of the dairy industry in India is colossal in terms of the number of farmers, milk unions and cooperative societies associated with it. About a quarter of the total members of the Indian Dairy Industry are women and their unceasing endeavors have empowered the nation to become the leading milk producer in the world. The dairy industry follows a specific process for milk production, collection and procurement while the milk producers including women are employed at each stage of this course. There are various roles that rural women adore while being a crucial part in the progress of nation building process. Let’s walk through their responsibilities and how they have managed to contribute their part to the development of the Indian Dairy Industry.
According to a research conducted to study the participation of rural women across different operations of dairy farming, the study revealed that about 80% of the women are involved in feeding and watering of animals. The key activities they take up under this domain include taking animals out for grazing, fodder collection, chaffing of fodder, feeding animals, storage of feed & fodder, and watering the animals.
Livestock management is another core activity where women actively get involved. The operations followed are construction and cleaning of animal sheds, washing and grooming animals, milking, disposal of cow dung, and maintaining farm & dairy records. The same study as mentioned above recorded that 85% of women are engaged in milking the cattle.
Breeding is one of the important activities to be taken care of at the farm as a major part of your farm profit depends on it. However, the women participation in this area is least owing to the social taboos that persist in rural areas. Breeding includes taking animals for Artificial Insemination (AI), natural service, and pregnancy diagnosis, arranging materials during parturition, and visiting veterinarian during dystocia.
This field is something that requires sound knowledge and training on health of animals. This incorporates taking care of sick animals, new born calves, and pregnant animals, putting them on appropriate medication, and vaccinating them on regular basis. While, it is mostly seen that the women in middle and old age take care of animal healthcare. The study reported that around 82% women were involved in this field.
This consists of activities like processing of livestock products, sale of milk and its derivatives, sale and purchase of animals, and purchase of feed and fodder. Earlier, the involvement of women in marketing and selling activities wasn’t acceptable. Though, over the years the scenario has changed for the better to an extent that there are women operated cooperative societies who manage all the activities themselves.
Though there has been a significant development in the upliftment of women in India, both urban and rural, the dairy unions need to take up more activities to enhance women’s involvement in milk cooperatives. This can be achieved by forming Women Dairy Cooperatives (WDCs) and Women Thrift Groups (WTGs) and enrolling women in Women's Dairy Cooperative Leadership Program (WDCLP) to strengthen their participation in the dairy industry.
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