KOCHI: Till a few years ago, when those from the Kanjirappally area referred to ‘paal’ (milk), it meant latex. The notion, in terms of farming, is undergoing a slow change. It now also brings into focus cow milk, with an increasing number of persons taking a plunge into dairy farming. For K C Thomas, whose day starts at 4.30 am, the first job is to clean the cowshed. It takes another two hours before seven cows are milked. He himself delivers the milk to houses within a two-km radius.
His next task is cutting grass for the cows, lasting up to 4 pm, before his second milking session starts. “I had rubber in my four acres. As the income dropped and with demand for milk rising, I increased the number of cows. It is a job demanding our attention on an hourly basis. But it yields a decent income,” said Thomas, heading a five-member family.
Less than a km away lives Dennis Joseph, one of his relatives. “Though we had cows at our house for long, I started to rear more cows when I found it a profitable business. However, it is not profitable to rear cows yielding less than eight litres in the morning. Dairy farming gives me enough income to lead a good life. These days, the veterinary department is very supportive too,” he said.