Let it be
a sumptuous glass of milk , the happy faces of women in Gujarat, or the little
girl in the big hoardings in your local neighbourhood, the story of Amul has had a dimension of its
own when it comes to independent strength and sheer intent of a citizen to
change the system and bring about a revolution.
This needs enormous courage and determination especially in a nation
like India, which have always been in the clutches of “rulers” rather than
“contributors” from the very beginning of times.
One amongst them is Dr Verghese Kurien who is one of the rare
examples in today’s world which is otherwise engulfed in corruption , scams ,
hypocrisy and mediocre politics. He was the man behind the “Amul” brand and the
person who envisioned and executed the white revolution.
Recently I
had a chance to read ‘The Amul India Story ’, a book on the rise of Amul. The
story is about an unknown, sleepy village ‘Anand’ which rose to be the ‘Milk
Capital of India’ . Verghese Kurien had completed his MS in Mechanical
Engineering from Michigan State University on a scholarship from Governement of
India after which he had been posted in ‘Anand’ (Kaira district of Gujarat) to
take up the milk production department run there. Soon he had a meet with Tribhuvandas
Patel , a visionary, to take up a role in a newly found co-operative model milk
society. The co-operative society aimed at delivering nutritious milk from
well-bred cows in a hygienic way to millions of people around the country and
market the food brand in the name of ‘Amul’ . It also aimed at empowering women
and involving them in various departments in its production.
He was a
great visionary and had his own way of implementing his plans towards the
welfare of employees and the success of the company.
Amul
Co-operative system – common collection centres which had no distinction on the
basis of caste , creed or religion.
Operation
Flood – Spread over 23 states, 170 districts, and 90.000 village co-operatives
. It changed India into the world’s largest milk producer and exporter.
Rural
Upliftment – He believed that progress in rural areas is quintessential to
transform our country into developed country
Manthan , a rare , low budget movie directed
by Shyam Benegal and costing around million rupees was produced by Gujarat’s
dairy farmers with each contributing a rupee.
Discovery –
While the experts from New Zealand and Europe re-iterated that buffaloes milk
cannot be coverted to milk powder, he discovered and demonstrated the whole world
that how it can be done on a commercial basis
Ad campaigns
– Amul had one of the longest running ad-campaigns and the most interesting
ones too. The chubby little girl who comes in a polka-dotted dress was the
mascot for its campaign. The ads were pun-intended and had strong baselines
based on current happenings. They stood up for every public cause and often had
to bring down their hoardings due to protests made by several political groups
and firms. Here are a few that I loved . You can also see the entire collection
from their archives . You'll love them !
As I start a
new phase of my career, I hope I would be motivated by the great personalities
who stood for the greater good of public as well as contributed towards the development
of our home country. These people who
have impacted the life of people by the sheer intent and indomitable spirit are
always a role model for the new generations to be socially responsible and
successful citizens of the nation.
Here's a video of the amul ad too...
