Many promising and innovative dairy farmers of the state, on November 30, were awarded for their productivity, hard work, and innovation, on the occasion of National Milk Day at the Central Dairy Campus in Mawiong.
National Milk Day is being celebrated across the country annually on November 26. In Shillong, this day was celebrated on November 30 with the hosting of a huge gathering of farmers, entrepreneurs, and students at the Central Dairy Campus.
The awards were presented to the recipients by Animal Husbandary & Veterinary Minister AL Hek.
Among the awardees was Mena Mary Wahlang, a local dairy farmer, who has been in this line of work for a long time.
Speaking to 4front Media, Wahlang, who bagged the ‘Dairy Farmer of the Year’ Award, said, “I fought for the title for the past many years. I was motivated to see women from other districts winning the title in recent years. I had always wanted this; though, I didn’t really know how to achieve it.”
But after a long wait, her hard work paid off. “Ultimately, I think the officials noticed my work. I’m overjoyed because it has been hard for us this year,” she said
Talking about the challenges, Wahlang said that in the past few months, the dairy farming community suffered a major blow from the Lumpy Skin Disease outbreak in the state. She, too, was affected by the outbreak and lost one of her cows.
Wahlang started the farm in 2006; at present, she has 16 milking cows.
Talking about her job profile, Wahlang termed it as a difficult yet rewarding job.
“I have to handle everything — from collecting grasses for the cattle, milking them, vaccination to assisting a female cattle give birth. Only a few women around are capable of handling such tasks”.
Wahlang is a trained farmer and is equipped with the skills and knowledge of several programmes, including artificial insemination.
Her eagerness to learn and willingness to try won the favour of many of the officials.
A mother of 4, Wahlang supports all her school-going kids through dairy farming alongside supporting her husband, who is under home care.
A highly-spirited and optimistic Wahlang added, “I want to fight for the national award too and, for that, I will need to work on building a bigger farm.”
