Pune (Voice news service):- Amul Clean Fuel BioCNG Car Rally, organised to commemorate National Milk Day on November 26, was flagged off from Pune on Monday. The rally, featuring 12 BioCNG cars, will traverse Mumbai and several cities in Gujarat before culminating in Anand on November 26, coinciding with the National Milk Day, celebrated in honour of the birth anniversary of Dr. Verghese Kurien, the Milkman of India.This event was organised at Khed near Pune.
The rally, a testament to the country’s dairy revolution and commitment to circular economy and sustainable farming, was flagged off by Jayen Mehta, Managing Director of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF – Amul), Mr Kenichiro Toyofuku, Director (Sustainability) Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Ms Nirmala Kurien, daughter of Dr Verghese Kurien. Dignitaries from Amul Federation, and Maruti Suzuki India also graced the occasion.
“We are thrilled to partner with Maruti Suzuki for the Amul Clean Fuel BioCNG Car Rally. This partnership aims to celebrate and spread the goodness of the new revolution of converting cow dung into biogas, making dairying more environment-friendly and sustainable, and generating a new income source for dairy farmers. Together, Amul, India’s most trusted food brand, and Maruti Suzuki, India’s most driven car brand, will carry the message of sustainable farming and the dairy revolution to every corner of the world,” Mr Mehta said.
Mr Kenichiro Toyofuku, Director (Sustainability), Maruti Suzuki India Ltd said, ”Bio -CNG is a highly sustainable mobility fuel option in India, which has a remarkable effect on reducing global warming. According to TERI research, the life cycle CO2 emission per km running of Petrol vehicle, EV and Bio-CNG vehicles are 184g, 150g, and -1,097g respectively. Clearly Bio- CNG is the best carbon minus fuel with a net-zero carbon emission on environment. Suzuki is promoting Bio-CNG and planning to setup 4 Bio-CNG plants jointly with Amul affiliated dairy.”
Ms Nirmala Kurien recounted the value system and processes laid down by her father Dr Verghese Kurien. She highlighted his passion for democratizing milk collection and institution building. She thanked Amul & Maruti Suzuki for their initiative to demonstrate the power of circular economy that will generate additional income for farmers and create eco system for better environment.
The new initiative to convert cow dung into organic manure and biogas has the potential to create a self-sustaining circular economy for dairy farmers. It will further empower the farmers, ensure the production of healthy and nutritious dairy products, and contribute to the well-being of the environment and future generations.
The Amul Clean Fuel BioCNG Car Rally is travelling to Mumbai, Valsad, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Statue of Unity, Godhra, Himmatnagar, Palanpur, Mehsana, and Ahmedabad before reaching Anand on November 26 after covering a distance of more than 1,400 km.The rally aims to spotlight the future of Indian dairying as environment-friendly and sustainable while become the “dairy to the world”, contributing 33% of global milk production by 2030.
Over the past 75 years, the Amul model has ensured sustainable income for lakhs of dairy farmers. Led by Dr. Kurien, the ‘White Revolution’ or ‘Operation Flood’ launched in 1970 propelled India from a dairy-deficient nation to the global leader in milk production. Dr. Kurien replicated the Amul model of dairy development across India to create multiple dairy cooperative brands which have further strengthened the Indian dairy industry.
National Milk Day is also dedicated to the millions of women dairy farmers, whose efforts have made India self-reliant in the dairy industry and ensured food security for 140 crore Indians.
Amul, India’s largest FMCG brand valued at Rs. 72,000 crore ($ 9 billion), is owned by 36 lac farmers contributing over 300 lac litres of milk daily. With a network of 100 dairies, 85 sales teams, 15,000 distributors and 1 million retailers, Amul distributes over 20 billion packs of dairy products annually in over 50+ countries.
