Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme

What is the Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme?

Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme is the dairy development scheme of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services (AH and VS), Government of Goa. The scheme helps farmers buy milch animals, cross bred cows, improved she buffaloes and indigenous breed cows, with a heavy capital subsidy, so that dairying becomes a viable self-employment option and Goa moves closer to being self-sufficient in milk.

The scheme is the amended successor to the earlier Kamdhenu Scheme (Sudharit), and it carries forward beneficiaries whose sanctions lapsed during the Lumpy Skin Disease outbreak from August 2022 onward.

Under the scheme the unit cost of an animal is fixed at Rs 70,000, which the Department benchmarks against an animal expected to yield about 2,700 litres of milk per lactation. Subsidy is calculated on that unit cost, not on whatever price a dealer quotes.

Key features

• Up to 90% subsidy, capped at Rs 63,000 per animal, for 1 to 10 animals.
• Rs 2,000 per animal transport incentive, or actual cost, whichever is less.
• Comprehensive insurance premium reimbursed up to Rs 16,625 per animal.
• 80% subsidy on cattle shed construction, up to Rs 2,59,200.
• Subsidy credited through the Electronic Clearance System of the financing institution.

How much subsidy does the Kamdhenu Scheme pay?

Animal purchase subsidy

The 11-to-20 and 21-to-100 slabs apply to applicants who were earlier issued orders under the Infrastructure Component of the Kamdhenu Scheme (Sudharit) Amended 2021, or whose orders lapsed because of the Lumpy Skin Disease outbreak.

Other components

• Transport: Rs 2,000 per animal or actual transport cost, whichever is less, reimbursed to the bank account along with the subsidy.
• Insurance: comprehensive insurance policy premium reimbursed up to Rs 16,625 per animal, paid directly to the financing institution.
• Infrastructure: 80% of construction cost for a 10-animal shed. Cost is taken at Rs 6,000 per square metre and 5.4 square metres per animal, giving Rs 3,24,000 for a 54 square metre shed and a maximum subsidy of Rs 2,59,200. Release is linked to animals actually purchased, a minimum of 50% of the unit strength, at Rs 25,920 per animal.

Who is eligible for the Kamdhenu Scheme?

You can apply if:

• You are a bonafide resident of Goa for at least 15 years.
• You own a pucca cattle shed with cement flooring built on your own land.
• You undertake to stall feed the animals, allowing grazing only in an open paddock around the shed.
• You have knowledge or experience in cattle or buffalo farming, or have been trained by the Department. New entrants must complete the 7-day dairy training.
• You are a member of a local dairy society, bachat gat or self-help group, unless you intend to brand your own dairy products without a milk union membership.
• Only one cowshed exists under a survey number of less than 400 square metres.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• The land or cattle shed is on lease or rent. Ownership is mandatory.
• You have availed the Community Dairy Farming Scheme (Amended 2021) or any later version of it. The two schemes are mutually exclusive in both directions.
• For the infrastructure component, the land was acquired through a gift deed, or is forest land or comunidade land.
• The shed is proposed in a low-lying area, near a river bank or a large water body prone to flooding, or in an area prone to water scarcity.

Additional conditions worth knowing before applying

• If your spouse is a government employee, you must file a declaration stating their department, designation, place of posting and mobile number.
• If you will hold more than 25 cattle, consent of the Goa State Pollution Control Board is required.
• Where multiple applicants share a survey number, the undivided share must exceed 400 square metres, co-applicants' NOCs must be obtained, sheds must be at least 5 metres apart on all sides, and each shed must have its own drainage and roofing.
• Purchases must be made only after prior written permission from the Department, and only through a registered dealer.

How to apply for the Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme

1. Approach the area Assistant Director or Veterinary Officer at your government veterinary dispensary or hospital and obtain the prescribed application form.
2. Complete the form in full and prepare it in triplicate. The original plus two photocopies — with all supporting documents attached.
3. Pay the non-refundable processing fee at the dispensary or hospital when the application is accepted: Rs 200 for General and OBC applicants, or Rs 25 for SC, ST and Dhangar applicants.
4. The Assistant Director or Veterinary Officer processes the case within 15 days and forwards eligible applications to the Director of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services for sanction.
5. On sanction, obtain prior written permission from the Department and purchase the sanctioned animals from a registered dealer within one year of the approval order.
6. Ensure the supplier arranges transit insurance, and get the animals comprehensively insured within 7 days of their arrival at your farm.
7. Submit the health certificate, purchase statement, purchase receipt and transport receipt through the Area Officer to the financing institution within a week of purchase, and the passbook copy within a month, so the subsidy can be released.

What obligations follow the subsidy?

Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme is not a one-way grant. The Department attaches conditions that run for years after the money is paid:

• Animals must not be disposed of for 42 months (3½ years).
• Animals must be compulsorily insured within 7 days of arrival by the beneficiary and the financing institution.
• Animals must be properly housed, fed and maintained, with milk and health records kept.
• An infrastructure unit must not be closed for 5 years from the date of subsidy release.
• On default in maintaining the animals for 3½ years, the Government recovers the subsidy, the insurance premium and the transport cost on a pro-rata basis.
• If an animal dies within one month of purchase, the beneficiary must report it in writing to the Area Officer within 24 hours.

How is the Kamdhenu subsidy paid?

The eligible subsidy is credited to the beneficiary's bank account through the Electronic Clearance System (ECS) of the concerned financing institution. The transport incentive is reimbursed to the same account along with the subsidy. The insurance premium, up to Rs 16,625 per animal, is reimbursed directly to the financing institution, not to the farmer. The infrastructure subsidy is released only after the animals are purchased, which is why the Department requires a letter from an ECS-capable financing institution at the application stage.

Why Kamdhenu applications get rejected or delayed

• Shed on leased or rented land, the single clearest disqualification.
• No letter from an ECS-capable financing institution attached to the form.
• New entrant without the 7-day dairy training certificate.
• Purchase made before written permission, or from an unregistered dealer.
• Animals not insured within 7 days of arrival at the farm.
• Infrastructure case without TCP clearance, an approved shed plan or a Panchayat or Municipality construction licence.
• Lapsed order not revalidated; applicants whose sanction lapsed after 2 August 2022 due to the LSD outbreak must apply for revalidation within one month of the Gazette publication, and then purchase within 6 months of the revalidation order.

Where to get help with the Kamdhenu Scheme

• Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, "SPACES" Building, Patto, Panaji, Goa 403 001.
• Phone: 0832-2437245 and 0832-2437244.
• Your area Assistant Director or Veterinary Officer at the nearest government veterinary dispensary or hospital. The first point of contact for forms, fee payment, sanction status and post-purchase certification.

Application forms are issued by the Department and the only payment due is the notified processing fee of Rs 200 or Rs 25, collected against a receipt at the dispensary.

How to check your Kamdhenu Scheme application status

Mukhyamantri Sudharit Kamdhenu Scheme runs on a paper file, not an online tracking portal, so there is no application ID or web dashboard to log into. Status has to be followed up in person or by phone, at whichever stage the file has reached.

1. At the veterinary dispensary or hospital stage (first 15 days). Contact the area Assistant Director or Veterinary Officer who accepted your application and fee receipt. Quote the date you submitted the form and the receipt number for the Rs 200 or Rs 25 processing fee. This office can tell you whether the file has been checked for completeness and forwarded, or is still pending a missing document.

2. At the sanction stage. Once the Assistant Director or Veterinary Officer forwards an eligible case, it goes to the Director of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services for sanction. Ask your area office whether your file has left their desk and, if so, on what date, since the Directorate does not deal with applicants directly for individual file status.

3. By phone. Call the Department's helpline numbers, 0832-2437245 or 0832-2437244, or the office at "SPACES" Building, Patto, Panaji, Goa 403 001. Have your application date, applicant name and taluka ready, since there is no searchable online reference number.

4. After sanction, before purchase. If you have received a sanction order, status tracking shifts to your own compliance: whether you have obtained prior written permission to purchase, and whether you are within the one-year window from the sanction date to buy the animals from a registered dealer. The area officer's file is the record of this window, so confirm the exact sanction date with them rather than assuming.

5. After purchase, awaiting subsidy credit. Once you have submitted the health certificate, purchase statement, purchase receipt, transport receipt and passbook copy, the subsidy is released through the financing institution's Electronic Clearance System. To check whether the amount has moved, follow up with both the area officer (who confirms the paperwork was forwarded) and your bank or financing institution (who confirms whether the ECS credit has actually been processed), since a delay can sit at either end.

There is no SMS or email status alert built into this scheme. Because the process is entirely offline and file-based, keeping your own copies of the submission date, fee receipt and any acknowledgment given at the dispensary is the only reliable way to have a reference point when you call or visit for an update.