Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on Thursday has called for the rapid development of the dairy sector to meet the future demand of the country.
He said that by 2020, the demand for milk would touch more than 200 million tonnes.
The minister said this while inaugurating a new plant of dairy project in Haryana today.
According to an official statement, he highlighted the National Dairy Development Board's report which shows that during the year 2021-22, the demand of milk will surpass the earlier projection of 180 million tonnes,and may go up to 210 million tonnes.
In the next 10 years, an increase of six million tonne per year is required to meet the growing demand, he added.
Singh said that in the last 10 years, the Indian dairy sector grew by more than 4.2 per cent annually in comparison to world's 2.2 per cent.
The per capita availability of milk in the country stands at 296 grams per day, which is more than the world's average.