Achieving sustainable development goals as well as women empowerment through dairy sector

Introduction

Empowerment refers to the process of giving power strength and confidence to individuals so that they become capable of making decisions and improving their own lives. As Jawaharlal Nehru rightly observed the condition of a nation can be judged by the status of its women. Globally women represent nearly half of the population and play a crucial role in socioeconomic development. In 2022 the world population reached approximately 7.95 billion out of which about 3.95 billion (49.7%) were women. The global adult female literacy rate is around 83%. Agriculture continues to be a major livelihood source employing nearly 1.1 billion people worldwide. Women constitute nearly 43% of the global agricultural workforce but they still encounter several challenges such as limited ownership of land and livestock wage disparities restricted access to credit and low participation in decision-making institutions. In India women also represent a significant proportion of the population and contribute substantially to economic activities. According to the 2011 Census the total population of India was 121.1 crore with women accounting for 48.5%. The overall female literacy rate was 70.3% with rural female literacy at 65.0% and urban female literacy at 82.2%. The decade between 2001 and 2011 witnessed notable improvement in literacy particularly among rural women. Kerala recorded the highest female literacy rate (92.1%) whereas Bihar reported the lowest (51.5%). During this period rural female literacy increased from 46.13% in 2001 to 58.75% in 2011 reflecting a growth of 12.62%. The sex ratio stood at 940 females per 1000 males. Women's participation in the workforce although improving remains lower than that of men. As per Census 2011 the female workforce participation rate was 25.51% compared to 53.26% for males. A significant proportion of working women are engaged in agriculture and allied sectors accounting for about 54.6% of female workers. In India's dairy sector women contribute substantially forming nearly 70% of the workforce with 41.8% participation from rural women and 35.31% from urban women. Despite their large contribution female labour participation often remains undervalued because much of their work is unpaid. Agriculture continues to be the primary employment source in rural areas where about three-fourths of female workers and nearly half of male workers are involved. The introduction of dairy development programmes has further strengthened women's economic role. Prior to these initiatives women spent nearly 30% of their time on agricultural labour however after implementation they devoted around 50% of their time to dairy activities which resulted in higher income generation. Women's participation in dairy cooperatives has also increased significantly. More than 0.32 million women are actively involved in village-level dairy cooperative societies and management committees and over 354 women serve on the boards of milk unions highlighting their growing leadership role in the dairy sector.

Different activities perform by women in dairy sector

The following discussion focuses on women's participation in various dairy-related activities. Dairy farming is one of the important enterprises which dominate the economic activities of the woman in the rural areas of India. Increasing demand for milk and milk products in recent years intensifies dairy farming as profitable enterprise for rural woman. 1. Feeding and watering 2. Health care 3. Breeding 4. Process and marketing 5. Management 6. Miscellaneous 1. Feeding and Watering: Women play a dominant role in feeding and watering of dairy animals and most of these responsibilities are handled primarily by them. Their tasks include taking animals for grazing fodder collection chopping and storage of feed feeding animals mixing green fodder with roughage and providing water. These activities are largely performed by women across rural households. Elderly women are often more engaged in grazing activities as these tasks require comparatively less physical effort while middle-aged women are mainly involved in cutting and storing feed and fodder which demands moderate labour and experience.

Health Care:

Middle-aged women actively participate in animal health care mainly due to their practical knowledge gained through experience and observation. They take care of sick animals assist during pregnancy and follow traditional health practices. Various studies have reported that the care of sick animals is predominantly performed by farm women. Women were involved in care of newborn calves (65.3%) deworming (55.3%) taking animals for treatment (52.0%) and vaccination (30.6%) whereas only 16.6% women maintained health records. Similar observations were also reported by Kulvir Kaur (2015) [4] .

Breeding: Participation of rural women in breeding activities is relatively low compared to other dairy operations mainly due to social customs and traditional norms. However, women actively take animals for pregnancy diagnosis. Studies indicate that about 78.33% of farm women took animals for artificial insemination while 69.16% arranged natural service. It was also reported that 73.33% respondents called veterinarians during dystocia and 67.5% arranged bedding materials during parturition. Comparable findings were documented by Singh (2003).

Processing and Marketing: Women's participation in milk processing and marketing activities is relatively limited. They are less involved in preparation of value-added products such as ghee butter and khoa mainly because these activities are time-consuming and labour-intensive. Women generally focus more on milk collection and supplying milk to collection centres. Studies have shown that only about 64.4% women were engaged in small-scale processing and most of them prepared milk products mainly for household consumption. In general women were more involved in direct sale of milk rather than product diversification.

Management: Women also contribute significantly to the management of dairy animals. Their responsibilities include cleaning animal sheds washing and grooming animals' disposal of dung milking and maintaining milk records. Many women also participate in construction of animal sheds using locally available materials. Milking of animals and cleaning of milking utensils are among the most commonly performed activities by women in dairy households.

Miscellaneous Activities: Miscellaneous activities include obtaining credit from banks or cooperatives and maintaining records. Rural women often consider financial dealings as the responsibility of men and therefore only 49.16% women were involved in loan-related activities. Record keeping was also limited as only about 52.2% women maintained simple notes in small registers or on loose papers. Similar observations regarding record maintenance were reported by Yadav et al. (2005) [8] . Despite their extensive involvement in animal husbandry women's contributions in India remain undervalued and often unrecognized. They frequently work as invisible labourers even though they perform a majority of dairy-related activities. Therefore, it is important to assess and quantify women's contribution in dairy farming and link it with empowerment. Women are increasingly becoming central to dairy development which helps improve their economic nutritional and social status. At the same time modern dairy farming faces sustainability challenges including greenhouse gas emissions and the need for environmentally economically and socially sustainable production systems at the farm level.

How to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals through Dairy Sector

What is Sustainability: "Ability to make development sustainable-to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". According to Robert et al in easy way sustainable means it is the techniques or methods of harvesting or using a resource without depleting it or damaging it permanently.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The SDGs have been developed through an unprecented consultative process that brought national governments and millions of citizens from the globe together to negotiate and adopt this ambitious agenda. Environmental degradation and social tensions have put societies under severe pressures the past couple of decades to such a degree that a historic global political agreement was made in September 2015, when 193 countries signed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, the so-called SDGs or "Global Goals". SDG were adopted on September 25th, 2015. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with 169 target are part of this agenda, demand nothing short of a transformation of the financial, economic and political systems that govern our societies today to guarantee the human rights of all. 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere. 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all age. 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation. 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries. 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. Around 20.5 million people depend on livestock for their livelihood. Livestock contributes nearly 16 percent to the income of small farm households compared to an average of 14 percent for all rural households. India is the largest milk producer in the world contributing about 23 percent of global milk production. This production largely comes from animals managed at the household level where women form a major part of the workforce. Therefore, the dairy sector acts as an important employment generator particularly for rural women and plays a vital role in their empowerment.

Revenue generation: Participation of women in dairy activities enables them to earn regular income and achieve economic independence. Through milk production processing and marketing of dairy products women can generate consistent earnings. This income helps them contribute to household expenses and improves their decision-making power within the family.

Decent work:

Dairy farming provides decent employment opportunities for rural women. Decent work refers to productive employment that ensures fair income workplace security social protection and opportunities for personal development. It also promotes social inclusion and equality of opportunity. Through dairy farming women can participate in decision making express their views and improve their socioeconomic status.

Food and nutritional security:

The dairy sector contributes to women's empowerment from both livelihood and nutritional perspectives. Women who own or manage livestock improve household nutrition health and education outcomes. Milk production supports millions of rural families and creates socio-economic value. Milk and dairy products enhance the nutritional intake of women and girls at different stages of life.

Low investment business: Dairy farming is a low investment enterprise which makes it suitable for rural women. For example selling buffalo milk is a profitable activity in many rural areas. With proper care and feeding animals can produce high-quality milk which provides regular income. This reduces financial risk and encourages women to adopt dairy farming.

Insufficient agriculture land: Declining land holdings and increasing population have reduced agricultural income. This situation has increased the importance of livestock-based livelihoods. Dairy farming can be carried out even by landless households and therefore provides opportunities for women's empowerment. Livestock also provides supplementary income and acts as a financial buffer during crop failure.

Education: Low literacy levels among rural women limit their employment opportunities. Dairy farming does not require high educational qualifications which makes it accessible to less educated women. By engaging in dairy activities rural women can support their families and gradually improve their socio-economic condition.

Overall, the dairy sector offers regular income employment opportunities food security and social empowerment. Due to these advantages dairy farming is considered one of the most effective pathways for strengthening women's economic and social status in rural India. The production of very low in the small scale dairy system because these are based upon low input moslty, and use of traditional way, women are not aware about scientific and reagarding production processing and marketing. Women accounted for 93% of total employment in dairy production in India.

Achieving

Common Practices for Increasing Production

Breeding: Selective breeding and improved reproductive management can enhance productivity and economic returns.

Reproductive efficiency, such as calving interval and conception rate, can be improved by selecting genotypes suitable for local production environments along with appropriate husbandry practices. Factors influencing reproductive performance include environment, nutrition, socio-economic conditions, adaptability, genetic characteristics and type of production system. Although small-scale dairy producers often lack formal scientific knowledge of breeding, they possess valuable traditional knowledge regarding local breeds and their management which can be integrated with modern practices.

Farm Practices:

The objective of good dairy farming practices is to produce safe and high-quality milk from healthy animals under acceptable management conditions. Dairy producers should adopt good agricultural practices in areas such as animal health, milking hygiene, nutrition, animal welfare, environmental management and socioeconomic management. Adoption of these practices helps improve productivity and ensures sustainability of dairy enterprises.

Feed Resources: Poor-quality feed with low digestibility and nutritive value is a major constraint in dairy production in many developing countries. Supplementation with energy-rich and protein-rich feeds is essential because milk production requires high energy. To overcome feed shortages and seasonal variation, producers in Asia and Africa are increasingly using fodder from trees and shrubs in fresh, dried or processed forms. Balanced feeding improves animal productivity and overall herd performance.

Animal Health: Animal diseases reduce milk yield, fertility and growth which leads to economic losses. Diseases also affect milk quality, delay puberty and reduce feed efficiency. Selecting animals adapted to local environmental conditions and implementing preventive health care can reduce disease incidence. Proper vaccination, deworming and biosecurity measures help improve productivity and ensure better animal welfare.

Processing:

Processing is another important component of the dairy value chain. Processing dairy products provides higher income to small-scale producers compared to selling raw milk and creates opportunities to access regional and urban markets. Milk processing also helps manage seasonal fluctuations in milk supply. Transformation of raw milk into processed products generates additional employment in collection, transportation, processing and marketing. Women can become entrepreneurs through involvement in dairy processing. Traditional dairy products such as ghee, chhana, paneer, khoa, rabri, lassi, shrikhand and kheer provide additional income opportunities for rural women. Milk can also be converted into value-added products with longer shelf life such as butter, cheese and ghee which are easier to transport and store.

Value Added Products: Value-added products are those that are differentiated from raw milk through processing or quality enhancement which increases consumer willingness to pay. By converting milk into processed products, producers can increase profitability and strengthen rural livelihoods particularly for women engaged in small-scale dairy enterprises.

Value added product

"A value-added product is anything that you are able to differentiate from the competition so that consumers are willing to pay more for the product because of that difference."

In dairy sector the processing system means value added product that is very important for women because it differentiated from the competition and helps in gain more income than other because of the consumers interest for these products is more. So through these value added product women can achieve sustainability and empowerment is also done. But our women have no idea about how value added to the product. mostly they were selling raw milk so it is needed to awae them about value added products. This is the%age consumption of dairy product in India. In coming days there will be increase demand of dairy by products like ice cream paneer, Channa cheese so by increasing the production these dairy product added the extra income of women.

Marketing:

Marketing is considered the third important pillar for women's empowerment in the dairy sector. Marketing of surplus milk increases household income and generates employment opportunities in processing, marketing and distribution, both in rural and peri-urban areas. This provides women with a valuable opportunity to earn income through the sale of milk and value-added dairy products. By actively participating in marketing activities, women can utilize these opportunities and develop entrepreneurial skills. The marketing of surplus milk not only enhances income but also supports employment generation and strengthens food security in rural communities. India's dairy sector also contributes to exports. The share of milk products in total exports is about 1.59%

Efforts to Promote Women in Dairying

Government initiatives in terms of-There are so many efforts done by government to promotes women in dairy sector. But the problem is that most of the women who involved in dairy sector are not aware of these programmes of government. This the window where women can show their products and sell their product.

Funds

Conclusion

Although women are extensively involved in dairy-related activities, their participation in decision-making processes remains limited. In many cases, women perform the majority of operational work but have little control over resources, income and management decisions. For meaningful empowerment, it is essential to ensure that women are included at every stage of decision-making and development within the livestock sector. Equal participation will help reduce gender-based discrimination and strengthen women's role in planning, production, processing and marketing activities. When women are empowered within their communities, it encourages greater involvement of other women in the dairy industry. This collective participation enhances skills, increases productivity and ultimately leads to economic independence. Strengthening women's decisionmaking power not only improves household welfare but also contributes to sustainable rural development.

As rightly stated by Amartya Sen, "Empowering women is key to building a future we want." This highlights that women's empowerment in the dairy sector is essential for achieving inclusive growth, social equity and long-term economic development.

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