The bids submitted by dairy cooperatives Amul and Nandini to operate state-owned Delhi Milk Scheme (DMS) on long-term lease are lower than the reserve price and the government is now exploring other options to revive the loss-making firm, a senior agriculture ministry official said.
In 2015, the Union Cabinet had given the go-ahead for corporatisation of DMS. The bids were invited for leasing out the DMS, which has milk production and packaging capacity of 5 lakh litres per day, besides a network of 1,298 outlets in the NCR.
The government received only two offers from Amul and Nandini, the official said, but did not divulge the bid value.
Amul brand is marketed by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), while Nandini is marketed by the Karnataka Cooperative Milk Producer’s Federation (KMF).
“DMS was to be offloaded to one of the cooperatives. Unfortunately, the bids did not fructify. The offer that we got through tenders was much less than the reserve price. It was not even negotiable,” the senior official told PTI.
Emphasising on the need to revive the DMS, the official said, “other options need to be worked out and the cabinet has to take a decision on this matter.”
DMS was established in 1959, with the primary objective of supplying wholesome milk to Delhi citizens at reasonable prices as well as for providing remunerative prices to milk producers. It has 800 employees.
DMS has been procuring raw/fresh milk from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar. Besides processing and supplying milk, DMS is also manufacturing and marketing yogurt, ghee, butter, paneer, buttermilk and flavoured milk.
Source: Mint