Construction of Dudhghar/Godown (Scheduled Tribe Area)

What is the Construction of Dudhghar/Godown scheme?

Construction of Dudhghar/Godown (Scheduled Tribe Area) is a scheme of the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department, Government of Gujarat, delivered through its Animal Husbandry wing and the district dairy co-operative structure. The scheme's own description on agri.gujarat.gov.in sets out a narrow, practical purpose: Village Milk Producer Co-operative Societies in the state's Scheduled Tribe areas that do not have their own Dudhghar or Godown are given capital assistance so that they can build one.

A dudhghar, literally a milk house: is the village-level building where members pour milk twice a day, where fat testing happens, and where a bulk milk cooler can be installed so that milk stops spoiling between collection and despatch to the district union. A godown alongside it stores cattle feed. In tribal talukas where societies are small and thinly capitalised, the absence of that one building is often what keeps a village outside the organised dairy chain.

According to the department, constructing the Dudhghar provides proper infrastructure for clean and hygienic milk production, and the benefit flows both ways: producers get better realisation and consumers get safer milk. The scheme also creates a direct linkage between milk producers and consumers by integrating production and procurement.

How much assistance is given?

The formula rewards accurate costing. The department first takes the lower of the notified unit price of Rs 10,00,000 and the actual expenditure incurred, and then pays 50% of that lower figure. A society that builds for Rs 6 lakh receives Rs 3 lakh, not Rs 5 lakh. Only a society whose construction cost reaches or exceeds Rs 10 lakh draws the full Rs 5,00,000 ceiling.

The assistance is a once in a lifetime benefit for each society. It cannot be claimed a second time for a second building, and it cannot be claimed by a society that has already taken a similar grant from another programme.

The assistance can be used to put the society in a position to install bulk milk coolers and similar machinery, and the godown space can be used for cattle feed storage.

Who is eligible for the Dudhghar/Godown scheme?

A society qualifies if:

• It is a registered Village Milk Producer Co-operative Society.
• It is located in a Scheduled Tribe area of Gujarat.
• It does not already own a Dudhghar or Godown facility.
• It has its own land available for the construction.
• It has not availed the benefit earlier under this scheme or under any other scheme with a similar purpose, certified by the Managing Director of the Dairy Union.
• It is registered as a beneficiary on the iKhedut portal, with Aadhaar verification completed by OTP on the Aadhaar-linked mobile number.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• You are an individual dairy farmer, milk producer or society member. Individuals cannot apply for a personal benefit under this scheme; the claimant is the society as an institution.
• The society is outside a Scheduled Tribe area of the state.
• The society already has a Dudhghar or Godown of its own.
• The society does not own land for the construction. Land held on lease or used informally does not meet the requirement.
• The society has already taken assistance for the same purpose under this or another scheme.
• The applicant is a private dairy, a milk trader or a self-help group rather than a registered village milk producer co-operative society.

How to apply for the Dudhghar/Godown scheme

The application is online on the iKhedut portal, the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department's common platform for agriculture, animal husbandry, horticulture and fisheries schemes. The portal carries a standing notice that registration on iKhedut is compulsory for every beneficiary, and that the Aadhaar verification OTP is sent only to the mobile number linked to Aadhaar.

1. Register the society on iKhedut at ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in using the beneficiary registration option, and complete Aadhaar verification with the OTP sent to the Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
2. Open the Schemes menu on the home page and select Animal Husbandry Schemes.
3. Choose the Construction of Dudhghar/Godown (Scheduled Tribe Area) scheme and click Apply to open the application page.
4. Click Apply New and fill in the society's details, land particulars, bank details and proposed construction cost, then submit the new application.
5. Use Update Application to correct anything before confirmation. Once the application is confirmed it cannot be edited.
6. Confirm the application and take a printout of the confirmed form.
7. Submit the documents within 7 days — upload them on the portal, or deliver hard copies to the office named on the application form.
8. Track the application through the Applicant Corner at ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in/public/frm_Applicant_Corner.aspx, where you can also view, print and upload application details.

Registration can also be done through a public service centre or cyber café, which the department mentions specifically for societies that do not have their own internet access.

Which documents does the society need?

The document list is short by the standards of Gujarat's scheme portfolio, but each item is load-bearing. The Dairy Union certificate in particular is the department's only defence against duplicate funding across dairy development programmes, so it is checked closely and cannot be replaced with a self- declaration by the society.

How does a society check its application status?

1. Open the Applicant Corner on ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in.
2. Enter the application number shown on the confirmed printout.
3. Check whether the status shows documents pending, under scrutiny, or sanctioned.
4. If documents are shown pending after the seven-day window, contact the office named on the application form directly, a document failure is the most common reason an otherwise valid application stalls.

Why do Dudhghar/Godown applications fail?

• Documents not submitted within 7 days of the online application. The window is short and it is strictly applied.
• Land not owned by the society. Land in the name of a member, a panchayat or a donor without transfer does not satisfy the condition.
• The society already has a Dudhghar or Godown, which takes it outside the scheme's stated target group.
• Earlier assistance for a similar purpose, disclosed by the Dairy Union certificate.
• Application by an individual rather than by the registered society.
• The village is not in a Scheduled Tribe area, which is a threshold condition rather than a preference.
• Aadhaar OTP failure at registration, usually because the mobile number linked to Aadhaar is out of date. This is fixed at an Aadhaar enrolment centre, not on the iKhedut portal.

Where do you go for help?

• iKhedut portal contact page at ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in/Public/frm_Public_Contacts.aspx, which lists the office contacts for each district and department.
• The District Dairy Union for the certificate confirming that no earlier benefit was taken.
• The office named on the application form, which is where hard-copy documents go and where the file is processed.
• Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department at agri.gujarat.gov.in, which publishes the scheme text this guide is based on.

Applying on iKhedut is free. A public service centre may charge a small fee for assisted data entry, but no one can charge a society for "getting the scheme sanctioned".