MEDAK: The foundation stone for the `400-crore Sabar Dairy (Amul) Mega Integrated Dairy Plant was laid at Urja Industrial Park in Toopran of Medak district on Sunday.
Union Coal & Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy, IT & Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu and Mines Minister G Vivek Venkatswamy participated in the ceremony. The plant, which is expected to be completed in 18 months, will initially process five lakh litres of milk a day and benefit nearly 10,000 dairy farmers. It is also expected to generate around 350 direct jobs.
Speaking on the occasion, Kishan said that the project would strengthen the dairy sector and create additional livelihood opportunities, particularly for women and youth.
The Union minister called for strengthening the cooperative movement in Telangana, saying farmers could gain greater bargaining power by collectively participating in cooperatives. “Farmers know how to work hard and produce, but they often face difficulties due to lack of markets, storage, processing, branding and value addition. Cooperatives can help in addressing these gaps,” he said.
Citing Sabar Dairy’s growth, he said it began operations in 1964 with 19 cooperative societies procuring 5,100 litres of milk a day. It now processes nearly 50 lakh litres daily and has around 50,000 milk producers as members, most of them women. The dairy recorded a turnover of `10,500 crore in 2025-26, he said.
Sridhar Babu, meanwhile, said the plant would strengthen organised milk procurement, processing and marketing in Telangana. Sabar Dairy, which began operations in the state in 2015, currently procures more than one lakh litres a day from local farmers, he said.
The minister further said the cooperative model would ensure a larger share of consumer spending reaches milk producers and stressed the need to expand dairy cooperatives under the Centre’s Sahakar Se Samriddhi initiative.
Vivek seeks loans for Hyd Metro at 1% interest
Meanwhile, Vivek Venkatswamy urged the Centre to provide financial support to the Hyderabad Metro, including loans through the Railway Corporation at a 1% interest rate, to improve its financial viability.
He also urged Kishan Reddy to take steps to raise Metro ridership to 10 lakh passengers a day. He said that the recently introduced common pass for Metro and bus services could help boost ridership, particularly among commuters from rural areas.
The minister urged Amul to establish another milk processing unit in the Chennur Assembly constituency, citing its dairy potential, access to markets and proximity to Maharashtra.
Medak MP M Raghunandan Rao, district officials and Amul representatives attended the ceremony.