Kolhapur: The Kolhapur District Milk Cooperative, popularly known as Gokul , has hiked its milk prices in Kolhapur and Pune by Rs 2 a litre with effect from January 21.The cooperative is the biggest milk collector and processor in Kolhapur with a daily collection of around 1.2 million litres across the district. There are more than 3.5 lakh active milk farmers registered with the dairy.The cooperative said the price was increased because of the hike in milk production cost and fodder prices. "The farmers have less profit at the end of the day and they are hit by the inflation as well. Keeping all this in mind, they have been demanding the hike in milk prices," a source in the dairy sector said.The cooperative has hiked the prices cow and buffalo milk thrice in recent months. To match the production costs, it has increased the selling prices now.An officer-bearer of Gokul said, "We have hiked the prices of buffalo and cow milk by Rs 2 per litre in Kolhapur and Pune. From January 21, buffalo and cow milk in Kolhapur will be Rs 50 and Rs 40 a litre, respectively. For the Pune market, the prices of buffalo and cow milk will be Rs 54 and Rs 42, respectively."He added, "We have increased the purchasing prices of buffalo and cow milk by Rs 3 and Rs 3.20, respectively, in the past few months. We hiked the prices to encourage the farmers produce the high fat milk. The high fat milk attributes quality of high milk products."The cooperative has already hiked the milk prices in Mumbai from January 1. The farmers were struggling do matching the production costs. Now the hike in purchasing price has help them too to increase the profit.In Pune, the retail price of cow's milk rose by Rs 2 per litre from January 11. A 1-litre pouch of milk now costs Rs 42, instead of Rs 40. Buffalo milk's retail price was being hiked by Rs 2 — from Rs 52 to Rs54.The decision was taken at a meeting of the state's cooperative and private dairies to discuss issues pertaining to milk production and sales. To protect the interests of the milk producers, it was also decided to increase the purchasing price of milk from farmers by Rs 3.Representatives of dairies said a hike was inevitable because of a consistent drop in milk production, reduced availability of milk in the retail market and the purchase of milk by milk-powder manufacturers — and even by neighbouring states — at higher rates.Prakash Kutwal, vice chairman of the Maharashtra State Cooperative Milk Federation Action Committee, had said the drought, which affected the state for two years on the trot, rendered the farmers unable to provide good quality fodder to their milk cattle. That in turn affected milk production.

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