Spread in 1K acres, 100-year-old Ambala Military Dairy Farm now closed

Ambala: One hundred years old Ambala Military Dairy Farm has been closed. This Military Farm was set up in the year 1920 although the Military Cantonment was established in the year 1843 by the English rulers.

Now the military farm has been disbanded after the Army Headquarters took decision to do away with military farms in the Army cantonments in the country. Military Farm Ambala is one of the oldest Farms when first Farm was set up in Allahabad in the year 1889 followed by such farms in Delhi, Jammu and Shrinagar.

Military Farm was set up in Ambala in the year 1920.There are 130 Dairy Farms operating in the country. The annual expenditure on these farms is to the tune of re 280 crores. Reviewing the working of these farms, it was decided that these farms were handed over to the Army Services Corps after disbanding the Military Farms.

The argument given in this decision was that when these farms were set up , the Cantonments were situated far away from populated areas but now since urban areas around Cantonments have come up and the milk was available in abundance. The Army took the decision to bind up farms in view of the availability of milk and financial safety, the farms were closed.

According to Dairy Farm officers, the decision to close the Military Farms was announced at a function held in New Delhi on March 30. It was also decided that the staff working in the Military Farms would be absorbed in Army till the date of their retirement. Besides, the record of land and offices would be handed over by April 8.

The Army would take over the possession on completion of these formalities. Meanwhile, the temporary workers living in the Farm quarters have been served with notices to vacate the place of residence. About 1700 animals including cows and bulls were handed over to the concerned department in the year 2019. These animals were kept in the Dairy Farm spread over in 1000 acres. The workers who were looking after the animals, had been absorbed in other departments of the Ministry.(UNI)