The farms were established by the British Army for the production and supply of hygienic, wholesome and fresh cow milk to troops

After a service of 132 years, the Indian Army announced that the military farms will be closed down from Wednesday. The military farms in India are spread over more than 20,000 acres of prime defence land across the country in cities such as Ambala, Kolkata, Srinagar, Agra, Pathankot, Lucknow, Meerut, Allahabad and Guwahati.

The farms were established by the British Army for the production and supply of hygienic, wholesome and fresh cow milk to troops located in various garrisons across India.

Speaking to ANI, Lieutenant General Shashank Mishra said: “After serving for almost 132 years, the military farm is ending its services. It was established on February 1, 1889, in Allahabad, which is now Prayagraj, and by the time we got independence in 1947, India had 130 farms. At that time it was highly beneficial for us as the White Revolution had not begun. Verghese Kurien started Operation Flood in 1970.”

Mishra also said the military farms had been a big contributor to the promotion of dairy farming, which has helped the army provide milk in inaccessible areas of the country.

“For this commendable work, I congratulate the members of the military farms on behalf of the Army Chief. Today the flag was taken down which is a very emotional moment for all of us. This flag will be installed in the army museum with the history of military farms,” he said.

“The contribution of military farms will never be forgotten. Now milk is available everywhere, so it is being closed now and there has been a lot of expansion of the army, now we will use this land properly,” he added.

The Lieutenant-General also said all cows have been offered to the states and the people working in the military farms have been assigned to other departments.