Starting Wednesday (June 26), the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) will sell an additional 50 ml of milk in half and one-litre sachets of Nandini and charge ₹2 extra for the same.
While the Opposition condemned the price increase, which follows the petrol and diesel price hike, KMF said it was being done to help farmers as milk procurement had reached record levels this season, and there was “no real hike”; only additional milk was being charged extra.
Now, a one-litre sachet containing an additional 50 ml of the popular Nandini toned milk will cost ₹44 per litre, and a half-litre sachet containing an additional 50 ml will cost ₹24. Earlier, the cost of one litre of Nandini toned milk was ₹42, while a half-litre sachet was sold at ₹22.
With the additional 50 ml, Santrupti milk by KMF at ₹57 a litre is the costliest from the KMF stable, while double-toned milk at ₹43 will be the cheapest. Despite the price increase, milk in Karnataka remains cheaper compared to the neighbouring States.
KMF Chairman Bhima Naik’s announcement on Tuesday came as a surprise. The second largest milk federation in the country hiked the price of milk by ₹3 per litre in July 2023, while the farmers demanded a ₹5 hike per litre. He added that the actual cost for 50 ml would be around ₹2.10, and the Federation would incur a loss of 10 paise per sachet.
| Nandini milk variety | Revised prices after hike |
| Santrupti milk | ₹57 |
| Samrudhi milk | ₹53 |
| Shubham Gold | ₹51 |
| Homogenised Shubham milk | ₹51 |
| Shubham milk | ₹50 |
| Special milk | ₹50 |
| Homogenised cow’s milk | ₹48 |
| Homogenised toned milk | ₹45 |
| Toned milk | ₹44 |
| Double toned milk | ₹43 |
| State | Cost of 1 ltr milk |
| Karnataka Nandini | ₹44 |
| Kerala Milma | ₹52 |
| Delhi Mother Dairy | ₹54 |
| Gujarat Amul | ₹56 |
| Maharashtra Amul | ₹56 |
| Andhra Pradesh | ₹58 |
Opposition attacks government
Taking serious exception to the price hike, Leader of the Opposition in Legislative Assembly R. Ashok ridiculed that the Congress government had resorted to such a move to celebrate the anniversary of enforcing of the Emergency on the country.
In a post on X, Mr. Ashok pointed out that it was the second time milk prices had gone up in the 13-month rule of the Congress. He recalled that the milk prices had been increased by ₹3 a litre with effect from August 1, 2023.
He accused the government of rubbing salt into the wounds of people who were already affected by the hike in prices of petrol and diesel as well as vegetables.
BJP State President B.Y. Vijayendra alleged that the Congress had lost the moral power to continue in power. He declared that the BJP would launch a struggle against the Congress till it stepped down from power.
Calling the hike “a bumper gift” from the Congress to the people on the golden jubilee of the Emergency, the JD(S), in a post on X, wondered if the benefit of this increased cost would go to milk producers or to the KMF’s coffers. It also pegged the guarantee schemes as the root cause of the price hike.
Published - June 25, 2024 12:37 pm IST
