White Revolution in India

After the success of the Green Revolution in India, the Government came up with the idea of the White Revolution which is also known as Operation Flood. The Objective behind the White Revolution was to increase the production of milk in the country just like the production of wheat and rice was increased by the Green Revolution. The motive was to make India one of the largest milk-producing countries in the world. The white revolution was initiated by the Government of India to make India a self-dependent nation in milk production. Dr. Verghese Kurien was the father of the White Revolution in India. He was also chairman, and founder of AMUL India.

In the year 1964-1965, The people involved in cattle farming were provided with the package of improved animal husbandry under the Intensive Cattle Development Program. The National Dairy Development Board of India (NDDBI) came up with a new initiative toward the White revolution named Operation Flood to accelerate the revolution in 1970. 

India had low milk productivity but with the introduction of the white revolution, India has become the largest milk-producing country in the world. The major milk-producing states in India are Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, and Punjab. The largest buffalo milk producer in the world is India and credit goes to the White revolution initiative.  In the year 2014-15, India produced 146.31 million tonnes of milk. 

There were 3 main objectives of introducing the White revolution in India. First, Increasing milk production creates a flood of milk in India. Second, Increasing the income of the farmers belonging to the rural population and third, bring the prices low and affordable for everyone. 

Phases of the White Revolution in India

Phase 1 (1970-1980): In 1970, the white revolution started with the aim of setting up dairy cooperatives in 18 milk sheds in 10 states of India and they were linked with 4 major metropolitan markets of the country. This phase was financed by the sale of butter oil and skimmed milk powder. These products were donated by the European Union during the world food program. This phase ended in 1981 with 13000 village dairy cooperatives and 15000 farmers.

Phase 2 (1980-1985): This phase started with the aim of building the phase 1 design and assisted dairy development programs in 3 states of India i.e Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh. The production of domestic milk powder reached 140,000 tonnes by 1989 and the sale of milk also increased. This phase ended by 1985 with 136 milk sheds and 34,500 village dairy cooperatives and 36 lakhs members. 

Phase 3 (1985-1996): This phase started with combining the gains of stage 1 and stage 2 to improve the productivity and efficiency of the dairy sector in the long term. By 1996, there were 73,300 dairy cooperatives and 9.4 million farmers. 

Key Features of White Revolution in India

1. Adopting new methods of animal husbandry in the case of Cattle.
2. Changing the composition and proportion of the ingredients in the feed. 
3.  Fixing the cost of different producers on a sliding scale of India. 
4. Dairy cooperatives were introduced to create a small farmer-controlled network. 
5. From 1998 onwards, India became the highest milk producer in the world surpassing the USA and contributed 17% of global output in milk production in the year 2010-11.
6. The milk availability per person in India doubled in 30 years.
7. Due to the successful implementation of the White revolution in India, the total milk production output was increased 4 times. 
8. The White revolution increased production and hence removed the role of middlemen. 70%-80% of the cost was directly given to the farmers by the customers. 
9. In 40 years, the phenomenal growth of milk production reached 100 Mt million from 20 MT million. 
10. The dairy cooperative movement under the White revolution stretched across the country covering about 125,000 villages of 180 districts and 22 states. 

Impacts of White Revolution in India

The white revolution came out to be the most successful step taken by the Indian Government to increase milk production. It had many positive impacts on India. It was as important for milk production as the green revolution for the increase in the yield of wheat and rice. Some of the positive impacts of the white revolution in India are listed below:

• The White Revolution had a great impact on the rural population and encouraged them to adopt dairying as an occupation.
• The white revolution turned India into the leading milk producer in the world. The milk production was just 17 million tonnes in 1950-51 but after the white revolution, it increased to 105 million tonnes in 2007-08. If compared with the milk production with that of during the pre-independence, it has increased up to 6 times.  
• The per capita availability of milk per day was 100 gm before the white revolution but now it is more than 200 gm.
• India no longer needs to import milk or milk production. The nation is capable enough to meet the milk demand of the country. Now India is exporting milk powder to many countries across the world. 
• The marginal farmers and small laborers are highly advantaged with the introduction of the White revolution.
• The research centers are developed at Anand, Mehsana, and Palanpur, and three regional centers are developed in Siliguri, Jalandhar, and Erode. There are metro diaries in 10 major metropolitan cities in India and there are 40 plants established with the capacity to handle more than one lakh liter of milk at a time. 
• In 2005-2006, the Government implemented livestock insurance on a pilot basis.
• Cross-breeding was adopted extensively to improve the quality of the livestock.
• The government introduced many health schemes to ensure disease-free status. 
• White revolution removed the regional and seasonal price variations of the milk. It ensured that the producer gets the major share of what is paid by the consumer along with customer satisfaction. 

Milk Production and Per Capita Milk Availability in India

Negative Impacts of White Revolution in India

As everything has two sides, negative and positive, so as the white revolution. Although the white revolution was highly advantageous but there were a few disadvantages also. A few of the disadvantages are listed below:

1. The new fascinating dairy products lead to a decrease in the demand of the Indian product as the import was stopped.
2. There were chances of many contagious diseases spread because of the high risk of diseases in livestock.
3. The major issue was the adulteration of milk and dairy products during the white revolution.  

Conclusion

The White Revolution in India had modernized the Indian Dairy Industry and made the country self-sufficient in milk. It had significantly increased the income and employment of the household farmers as it was the small farmers’ oriented program.  This program targeted the small farmers with limited land, animals, and resources, most of the families owned only 2 milch animals whereas about 20% of families were landless and 65% were small and marginal farmers with less than 4 hectares of land. 

Frequently Asked Questions on White Revolution

Q1. When did the white revolution started in India?
Ans: White Revolution in India started in the year 1970.

Q2. What were the main impacts of the white revolution in India?
Ans: The white revolution in India had many positive impacts. This revolution led to an increase in the production of milk and India became the leading milk-producing country in the world. The income and employment of small and marginal farmers increased a lot. 

Q3. Who was the father of the white revolution in India?
Ans: Dr. Verghese Kurien was the father of the white revolution in India.

Q4. What were the three phases of the white revolution in India?
Ans: The three phases of the white revolution in India are:

     Phase 1: From 1970 to 1980
     Phase 2: From 1980 to 1985
     Phase 3: From 1985 to 1996

Q5. What are the major milk-producing states?
Ans: The major milk-producing states in India are Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, and Punjab.

Also Read: Green Revolution in India