It’s curtains for Chittoor Cooperative Dairy

Chittoor: Ruling out the possibility of reviving the defunct Chittoor Cooperative Dairy, the government has decided to sell the 60-year old unit much to the dismay of the Opposition parties and Farmers’ Unions which had been clamouring for a revival of the dairy.

A notification for sale of the dairy is expected in a couple of days. The dairy has an asset base of Rs 240 crore against liabilities of Rs 220 crore.

Situated in an extent of 232 acres of land, the dairy was closed down two decades ago due to irregularities in administration by the then Management.

Interestingly, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu while inaugurating the statue of NP Veera Raghavulu Naidu (founder of the dairy) in 1999 had declared that he would strive to develop the dairy as a model one in the State.

The current decision by the government comes in the backdrop of the shutting down of the Tirupati and Chittoor cooperative factories, a couple of years ago.

The government had made a vain bid to privatise the defunct unit but there were no takers for the dairy. Farmers’ leader Venkatachalam Naidu who had been fighting for the revival of the dairy said he would undertake a fast-unto-death if the dairy was sold against the interests of the farmers.

Nagari YSRCP MLA Roja had also recently demanded that the dairy be revived. Meanwhile, speculation is rife that either the Apollo Group of Hospitals or Chittoor MLA DA Satya Prabha would come forward to purchase the unit.

The property value of the dairy itself is believed to be around Rs 250 crore at current market prices.

It is learnt that Apollo Group of Hospitals or Chittoor MLA D.A.Satya Prabha would come forward to purchase the sick dairy because of value of the site alone.