Anand: Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay has sought Amul's expertise to source 2,000 cows from India to the Himalayan nation. Tobgay, who was on a tour to India, visited Amul Dairy at Anand.
"I have grown up experiencing Amul. I have heard about this lovely city - Anand. Of course, I am delighted and honoured to be here to pay my respects to the spirit of Sardar Patel and Dr Verghese Kurien," Tobgay said after visiting the butter plant along with his 19-member delegation that included his wife Aum Tashi Doma and daughter Gelek Yangzom.
"I also come from a family of farmers. I still have cows in my home and I know the importance of milk. My daughter is 15 years old but she is tall and big. It is all because of the power of milk," he said, to the delight of officials of Amul Dairy.
"Bhutan wants to source 2,000 cows from India for dairy development there. Tobgay has sought our expertise in this project and we have assured him all the required co-operation from our side," RS Sodhi, managing director of GCMMF that markets India's largest food brand Amul, said.
Talking to media, he said the tiny Buddhist kingdom too has dairy co-operatives. "All over the world, wherever dairy co-operatives have come up, they are getting inspiration from Amul and Dr Verghese Kurien," he said.
Last October, Bhutan's Department of Livestock (DoL) had released a dairy breed called 'Karan Fries' at its Samtse-based National Jersey Breeding Centre (NJBC) to provide more options of dairy breeds for the livestock farmers in the country. DoL had imported 30 Karan Fries from Haryana which were developed at the National Dairy Research Institute at Karnal by crossing Holstein Friesian cattle with Tharparkar, the Indian milch breed.
At the Dr Verghese Kurien Memorial located inside Amul Dairy premises, Tobgay appreciated Amul's hospitality. "Honored to visit Anand to pay my respect to Sardar Patel, a giant among men and Dr Verghese Kurien, an inspiration for people world over. Thank you team Amul for your hospitality," he wrote in the guest book.
