Gujarat Integrated Dairy Development Scheme: A Complete Guide

A ₹90,000 dairy unit for BPL tribal women, with a loan, subsidies, insurance, feed and training built in

For many tribal families in Gujarat, a milch animal is the difference between a precarious income and a steady one. The Gujarat Integrated Dairy Development Scheme, officially the Integrated Dairy Development Project (IDDP), helps Scheduled Tribe women below the poverty line start dairy farming as a full-time livelihood. This guide covers what the scheme offers, who can apply, how the money is structured, and how to apply online.

What Is the Scheme?

The IDDP is a livelihood scheme of the Tribal Development Department, Government of Gujarat, launched in 2007-08 for Scheduled Tribe (ST) families living below the Poverty Line (BPL). The government helps tribal women buy milch cattle through a mix of loan, subsidy and state assistance, and also covers cattle insurance, transportation, feed, treatment and training.

The Development Support Agency of Gujarat (D-SAG), an autonomous society promoted by the Tribal Development Department, implements the scheme as the nodal agency.

Why It Was Launched

Earlier programmes treated dairying as a part-time or side income for poor families, and that approach never made a real dent in tribal poverty. The IDDP aims instead to turn dairying into a full-time, income-generating enterprise for BPL tribal households, double their income and lift them out of poverty permanently.

The goal is a sustainable unit of at least four milch animals per family. The project provides two cattle, and families build up the other two through better cattle management, rearing practices and artificial insemination (AI) services offered under the project.

Key Highlights

• Assistance: ₹90,000 per dairy unit
• Beneficiary: BPL tribal women of Gujarat
• Nodal agency: Development Support Agency of Gujarat (D-SAG)
• Mode of application: Online, through the D-SAG Sahay portal
• Covers: Milch cattle, insurance, transportation, feed, treatment and training
• Helplines: 7923253264 and 7923257703

How the ₹90,000 Is Funded

The unit cost is split across four sources. The beneficiary pays only ₹3,000.

Source	Amount
Loan (Gujarat Tribal Development Corporation, GTDC)	₹29,000
Government of India subsidy (proposed)	₹29,000
State Government assistance	₹29,000
Beneficiary contribution	₹3,000
Total unit cost	₹90,000

Where the Money Goes

Component	Unit cost
Milch animal	₹79,500
Cattle insurance	₹3,000
Cattle transportation	₹1,000
Cattle feed	₹2,000
Cattle treatment	₹1,200
Training	₹400
Administrative expenses	₹2,900
Utensil kit	₹0
Total	₹90,000

The loan and the beneficiary’s ₹3,000 go toward the milch animal itself, together with part of the subsidy and state assistance. The smaller components, such as insurance, transport, feed, treatment and training, are covered by the subsidy, and administrative costs are met by the state.

Other Benefits

• Quality cattle: Breeds such as Holstein, Friesian and Jersey are provided under the project.
• Health services: Vaccination, medicines, infertility treatment and veterinary visits.
• Clean milk production: Support for hygienic milking, including stainless steel cans and utensils in earlier phases.
• Village dairy infrastructure: Bulk milk chillers, automatic milk collection systems and AI facilities at village and district level.
• Training: Scientific dairy practices, including SATCOM-based training for women.
• Assured market: District milk cooperatives buy the milk, giving families a regular monthly income.
• DBT payment: Assistance reaches the beneficiary directly through Direct Benefit Transfer.

Women Own the Animals

Only women receive cattle under the project. This gives the woman ownership of the animal and control over the income from milk, which makes the scheme as much about women’s economic independence as about dairy farming.

Who Is Eligible?

To qualify, an applicant must:

• Be a woman
• Belong to a Scheduled Tribe (ST)
• Belong to a Below Poverty Line (BPL) family, with a BPL score of 0 to 20
• Live in Gujarat, in the tribal areas or village clusters covered by the implementing district dairies
• Be a farmer, livestock keeper (Pashu Palak) or self-employed woman in a tribal or forest area, interested in self-employment through dairy farming
• Be a member of a Milk Producers’ Cooperative Society

Men and non-tribal women do not receive cattle under this scheme.

Who Runs It on the Ground?

The scheme works through a partnership model. D-SAG runs it, GTDC acts as the lender, and district milk producers’ cooperative unions provide technical and marketing support. These include Baroda Dairy, Banas Dairy, Panchmahal Dairy, Sabar Dairy, Sumul Dairy, Vasudhara Dairy and Bharuch Dairy.

Dairy / Partner	District(s)
Baroda Dairy	Vadodara
Banas Dairy	Banaskantha
Panchmahal Dairy	Panchmahal, Dahod
Vasudhara Dairy	Valsad, Navsari, Dangs
Sabar Dairy	Sabarkantha
Bharuch Dairy	Narmada
Sumul Dairy	Surat, Tapi
GRISERV-BAIF	Tapi (Primitive Tribal Groups only)
AKRSP	Surat (Primitive Tribal Groups only)

The project operates in specific tribal talukas within these districts, such as Chhota Udepur, Santrampur, Dahod, Songadh and Dediapada. Check with your district dairy or the D-SAG portal to confirm whether your taluka is covered.

Loan Terms

The loan portion comes from the Gujarat Tribal Development Corporation (Gujarat Adijati Vikas Nigam), which works as the “lender of last resort” under the project.

• Loan amount: ₹29,000 per unit, as per the GR dated 12-03-2024
• Interest rate: 6% per annum
• Repayment: Starts three months after disbursement, in 30 equal monthly instalments
• Process: GTDC releases credit in advance to the district dairies, so the participant only needs to fill in the loan form to get cattle

Documents You Will Need

• Passport-size photograph
• BPL card
• Caste certificate (Scheduled Tribe)
• Bank passbook or cancelled cheque
• Age proof
• Ration card number and an active mobile number (needed for portal registration)

How to Apply Online

Applications are made through the D-SAG Sahay portal.

1. Open the official D-SAG Sahay portal.
2. On the home page, choose “Beneficiary Registration.” First-time users should select “New Registration.”
3. Enter your name, mobile number and other required details.
4. Enter the OTP sent to your mobile number to finish registration.
5. Log in with your credentials.
6. Choose the Integrated Dairy Development Scheme from the list of schemes.
7. Enter your personal, family, bank and other details carefully.
8. Upload scanned copies of the required documents.
9. Review everything and submit. Keep your application number for future reference.

What Happens After You Apply

The scheme follows a saturation approach: each year, D-SAG selects clusters of 10 to 20 villages in every taluka and prepares a list of eligible beneficiaries there. This means your village needs to fall within a cluster chosen for that year.

The proposal is prepared through the District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union and submitted with the recommendation of the Project Administrator. Officials verify applications, select beneficiaries through a transparent process, and give approval online.

Beneficiaries then choose their cattle and agree on the price through personal inspection at cattle camps organised under the project. The State releases its assistance through DBT, and GTDC routes the loan through the district dairy.

What Results Can You Expect?

According to the Tribal Development Department, the project has provided about 1,42,250 cattle to Scheduled Tribe families. Beneficiaries earn around ₹3,500 to ₹4,000 per month from dairy activities. These are department figures and actual earnings will vary with the animals, feed costs, milk prices and the family’s own management.

Before You Apply

A few practical points are worth keeping in mind:

• The Government of India’s ₹29,000 share is described as “proposed.” Confirm the current funding position with D-SAG or your district dairy.
• It is a loan. The ₹29,000 must be repaid with 6% interest over 30 monthly instalments, so plan for the monthly repayment before you commit.
• Eligibility depends on your village. Because of the saturation approach, being eligible on paper does not guarantee an opening in your area this year.

Related State Schemes

Gujarat also runs the Mukhyamantri Kisan Sahay Yojana, which offers crop-loss compensation of ₹20,000 to ₹25,000 per hectare (without premium) for natural calamities, and the Sardar Krushi Jyoti Yojana (SKJY), which upgrades old agricultural power lines to improve electricity supply for farming.

Where to Get Help

• Tribal Development Department, Gujarat helplines: 7923253264 and 7923257703
• Portal: D-SAG Sahay
• Nodal agency: Development Support Agency of Gujarat (D-SAG)

The source material does not give a last date to apply, so check the D-SAG Sahay portal or call the helpline for current application timelines in your area.