Drop in milk procurement hits Aavin supply in Chennai city, suburbs

CHENNAI: The decrease in daily procurement of Aavin milk by 9 to 10 lakh litres has caused a significant impact on milk supply throughout Chennai. Over the past few days, residents in the southern, eastern, and suburban areas have experienced a delay in deliveries.

The retail supply of Aavin has been delayed up to three hours and for cardholders up to two hours, said residents. The dairies in Sholinganallur, Madhavaram, Ambattur, and Kakkalur from where milk is being supplied to the city have been receiving raw milk late from the districts, said sources.

The district cooperative milk producers’ unions in Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Krishnagiri, Salem, and surrounding areas, which have been supplying milk to Chennai, are currently reeling under a shortage. This prompted Aavin to source milk from far away districts, leading to delays, said industry sources.

Official sources said the district milk unions in northern districts near Chennai used to have a reserve of 50,000 to 85,000 litres, which was utilised when milk procurement decreases during the lean season (April - November). The reserved milk was replenished within a few days by diverting milk from cooperative unions in Virudhunagar, Madurai, and other districts.

“The Vellore, Tiruvannamalai and Salem district unions have exhausted their surplus milk recently. Supply from Madurai, Thoothukudi and other districts has been affected as dairy farmers demanded a hike in procurement prices. Hence, there is a delay in supply to Chennai,” said an official from Aavin.

In Velachery, Thiruvanmiyur, Thuraipakkam, Nanganallur, and other areas, residents were only able to purchase milk after 8 am on Tuesdays. In some locations, the supply did not start until 10 am. The Aavin’s daily milk procurement plummeted to 27 lakh from 37 lakh litre. Apart from TN, Puducherry, Karnataka and a few central and Northern states also face milk shortage, added sources.

Chennai city receives 13 lakh litres of Aavin milk daily, with 4.5 lakh litres coming from the Sholinganallur dairy, 4 lakh litres from Madhavaram, 4 lakh litres from Ambattur, and one lakh litre from Kakkalur in Tiruvallur district.

Due to the delayed arrival of milk, the contract workers deployed in shifts are not finding work for two to three hours for the past few days. “When the contractor requested the workers to extend their shift, they refused to work additional hours which led to a minor altercation,” explained the Aavin official.

The official also denied strikes or protests by contract workers at any of its diaries as claimed by a few persons on social media. “Necessary efforts are being taken to ensure seamless supply of milk within a week,” said another official.