Guwahati: Secretary of Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (AHD), Alka Upadhyaya chaired a Regional Review Meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday for Animal Husbandry and Dairy sector with Additional Chief Secretary/Principal Secretary/ Secretary along with concerned Directors, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department of North East States namely Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura to discuss the progress of implementation of the programmes /schemes of the department.
The review meeting was attended by the Additional Secretary, Joint Secretaries, Chief Controller of Accounts and other senior officers of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, GOI.
Upadhyaya reviewed the physical and financial progress of all animal husbandry and dairying schemes like the Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), Entrepreneurship Development under the National Livestock Mission (NLM), National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP), Dairy Processing & Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF), National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) being implemented by Central Government in North East States.
She emphasized the need to utilize and dispose of unspent balances lying with the North East States under the schemes and directed states to promptly finalize and submit their annual action plans and demands for the financial year 2024-25 to the Central Government.
She also emphasized that States should prioritise the Creation of a Fodder Task Force, Livestock Insurance, and the establishment of IVF Labs, and asked State AHD to focus on the infrastructure development for improved healthcare services within states.
Additionally, she directed States for feedback with respect to the NADCP scheme to ensure its effective implementation. She placed strong emphasis on the establishment of Milk Producer Companies, along with dairy cooperatives as a strategic approach to bolster the dairy industry.
With the launch of the Realigned Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) Portal, she encouraged states to actively promote the scheme among beneficiaries, enabling them to maximize its benefits and fostering entrepreneurship.