Why Amit Shah’s Appeal For Collaboration Between Nandini Milk And Amul Is Drawing Flak In Karnataka

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah's appeal for collaboration between Karnataka Milk Federation's brand 'Nandini Milk' and Gujarat's 'Amul' is drawing a lot of criticism.
Shah had inaugurated a mega dairy built at a cost of Rs. 260 crore in Mandya district.
After the inauguration, he said that if Amul and Nandini work jointly, in three years they will be primary diaries at every village.
Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) will get all technical support and cooperation from Amul, he said, adding that if Karnataka and Gujarat come together in this direction, it will benefit the farmers all over the country.

‘Corporates want to grab Nandini brand’

But many people in Karnataka say that corporates want to grab the 'Nandini' brand through Amul, the brand of Gujarat's Anand Milk Union.

Some of them said the Nandini brand is more visible across the globe compared to Amul. In the adoption of technology, Karnataka and KMF are way ahead. What is the need for KMF to work with Amul, they asked.
Karnataka Milk Federation has 24 lakh members. In 22 thousand villages of the state, 14 thousand milk producers and milk co-operative organizations are associated with it. Every day 84 lakh liters of milk is procured from them.
Karnataka Milk Federation or KMF supplies milk not only in Karnataka but also to other states. Apart from this, it also sells its products to the Army and supplies milk and its products to many countries including the Middle East.
Former Chief Minister of Karnataka and Congress leader Siddaramaiah said that Amit Shah has made it clear that Gujarat's corporates are eyeing Karnataka Milk Dairy.
He said, "The farmers of Karnataka produce milk worth Rs. 20,000 crore. Lakhs of farmer families have benefited from this. Now corporate companies are eyeing it.”

Protest on Twitter

People are protesting against Shah's appeal on social media through the hashtag 'Brand Nandini Milk'.
A Twitter campaign began on Saturday, demanding that the KMF Nandini be saved, with hashtag #SaveNandini trending.
Many users were saying that this is an attempt by Amul to usurp the Nandini brand.
Popular film actor Puneeth Rajkumar was the brand ambassador of Nandini and KMF is currently in profit. The attempt to merge such an organization with Gujarat's Amul should be condemned, said a Twitter user.
Another user said: First imposed Hindi then merged Mysuru Bank now they came to Nandini Milk! Kannadigas don't wish to share its SPACE with any Gujarati brand.

'Wake up before life of farmers of Karnataka is attacked'

“People should wake up before the life of the farmers of Karnataka is attacked. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that Gujarat's "Amul" and Karnataka's "KMF" should work together. This is a premonition of danger after Vijaya Bank and Mysore Bank, which were already profitable in Karnataka, have lost their existence," said yet another user Chetan Surya in a twitter post.
Congress Rajya Sabha MP GC Chandrasekhar wrote on Twitter about the apprehensions being expressed about the alleged acquisition of Nandini and said Nandini is not just a dairy but emotion.