People in Meghalaya, especially in the rural areas are not in the habit of drinking milk

and as such the people of the state (government) were not inclined to milk production
in earlier days.1 In fact, states like Assam, Tripura and Mizoram are 3 among the
bottom 5 states in their per capita availability of milk.2 The dairy plants and chilling
centers do not have transport facilities for collecting milk from the rural areas to
ensure timeliness in milk collection from the producers and its transportation to the
preservation/processing unit, which is very critical in maintaining the quality of milk
and avoiding spoilage losses. The problems like frequent breakdowns of transport
service, lack of finances for repairing, etc. led to high curdling of milk and shook the
producers’ confidence in organized milk procurement system. However, the state is
taking necessary steps to increase milk production by bringing in milk production
plants by reputed dairy industries.3

In such states, where malnutrition is a matter of concern, the lack of easily available
milk/milk products means that many children/adolescents do not get the necessary
micronutrients for the body that come from milk. A study conducted by Dr Kate
Sadler and Dr Andy Catley in Africa showed that that a child’s nutritional status is
directly linked to his/her intake of milk and that milk plays a crucial role in a child’d
overall development.4

According to the Milk Marketing Federation, inclusion of milk in ‘mid-day meal

scheme’ is the only way the government can counter the huge problem of malnutrition
that the country is facing. “India is struggling to tackle the problem of malnutrition
which can be tackled if one glass of milk is included in the diet of school going
children twice or thrice a week," said the Managing Director of Milk Marketing
Federation Of Gujarat, Mr. R S Sodhi.5 “In Gujarat, there are 71 talukas where milk is
supplied in mid-day meal scheme under Dudh Sanjivani Yojana. Similarly, the
Karnataka Milk Federation supplies milk to all the schools of Karnataka. But there
should be a nation-wide policy,” he said.

1
http://www.megahvt.gov.in/policy.html
2
http://www.nelive.in/assam/business/dairy-industry-assam-past-present-future
3
https://www.telegraphindia.com/1130722/jsp/frontpage/
story_17142500.jsp#.WMigSSN94zY
4
http://www.ennonline.net/fex/38/milk
5
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health-news/Milk-in-mid-
day-meal-can-fight-malnutrition-Amul/articleshow/51164329.cms