Help for dairy farmers comes from the Kisan Credit Card, loans, insurance and government schemes. On 25 October 2026 the rules for applying to most of Tamil Nadu's new dairy schemes were not yet published. No one can promise you a loan or a subsidy: the bank or the department decides.
The schemes at a glance
| Scheme | Run by | For | Status (checked 25 October 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free milch cows | Government of Tamil Nadu | 10,000 eligible rural women a year | Funded; rules not yet published |
| Other Tamil Nadu schemes | Animal Husbandry Department, Aavin | Buffalo feed, care aid, chaff cutters, calf programmes, loans | Most rules not yet published |
| Kalnadaigal Kappom | Animal Husbandry Department, Aavin | Livestock insurance | Funded; terms not yet published |
| NLM livestock insurance | State animal husbandry departments | Insurance; you pay 15% of the premium | Ask which scheme is open now |
| Kisan Credit Card | Banks, milk societies | Running costs | Running; new rules from 1 January 2027 |
| Loans for milch animals | Banks, milk societies | Animals, shed, equipment | Open; the lender decides |
| Rashtriya Gokul Mission | Government of India | Free AI in 13 districts; help with sex-sorted semen | Funded for 2026-27 |
| NADCP | Government of India | FMD and brucellosis vaccines | Running |
| VB-G RAM G | Village panchayats | Cattle shelters | Running since 1 July 2026 |
Under NADCP, the Government of India pays for FMD and brucellosis vaccines, including the vaccinator's charge (DAHD). For other vaccines, ask your vet; see Cow and buffalo health: vaccine calendar and warning signs.
Tamil Nadu schemes
Where the rules were not published by 25 October 2026, only the official budget is given.
Free milch cows and other state schemes
- Official names: not yet published; announced in the Animal Husbandry Policy Note 2026-27 (Policy Note 2026-27).
- Run by: the Government of Tamil Nadu.
- Who can apply: not yet published.
- What they give (checked 25 October 2026): milch cows at no cost for 10,000 eligible rural women a year (₹56.75 crore); feed support for 1,000 buffalo heifers and 1,000 pregnant buffaloes (₹2.04 crore); ₹5,000 an animal in care aid for 5,000 native animals of women's self-help group members (₹2.50 crore); power-driven chaff cutters for 3,000 people (₹4.83 crore).
- How to apply and documents: not yet published; ask your veterinary dispensary.
- Official page: https://cms.tn.gov.in/cms_migrated/document/docfiles/ah_e_pn_2026_27.pdf
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Aavin programmes for milk society members
- Run by: Aavin and the district milk unions (Dairy Policy Note 2026-27).
- Who can apply: members who pour milk to a society.
- What they give (checked 25 October 2026): feed, minerals, sex-sorted semen, vaccination, deworming and insurance for 4,000 crossbred Jersey heifer calves, with the farmer paying part; support for 2,000 buffalo heifer calves in 12 unions; breeding help for 50,000 cows that do not conceive on time.
- Loans: KCC loans for animal upkeep, loans to buy milch animals, the Mini Dairy Scheme with 4% interest help from the state since October 2025, and low-interest TABCEDCO loans in Salem, Namakkal, Coimbatore, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Tiruppur, The Nilgiris, Dindigul and Thanjavur. Cooperative banks also lend for livestock (Policy Note 2026-27).
- How to apply and documents: ask your society secretary which programmes your union runs.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Livestock insurance
Kalnadaigal Kappom (Tamil Nadu)
- Official name: Kalnadaigal Kappom, a new livestock insurance scheme.
- Run by: the Animal Husbandry Department and Aavin (Policy Note 2026-27).
- Who can apply: not published.
- What it gives (checked 25 October 2026): ₹31 crore for 2026-27. The animals covered, the premium and your share were not published.
- How to apply: ask your veterinary dispensary or milk society whether it has started.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
NLM livestock insurance
- Official name: Livestock Insurance, National Livestock Mission (NLM).
- Run by: state animal husbandry departments; in Tamil Nadu, through veterinary units and Aavin societies (TNLDA).
- Who can apply: owners of milch cows and buffaloes; the subsidy covers up to 10 cattle per household (NLM guidelines, January 2025).
- What it gives: you pay 15% of the premium. In Tamil Nadu's last published rates (2023-24), the farmer's share for ₹40,000 of cover was ₹75 for one year or ₹189 for three years, outside the Nilgiris (TNLDA). Whether it is enrolling in 2026-27 was not confirmed: ask which scheme is open now.
- How to apply and documents: at your veterinary dispensary or milk society; the value is agreed with the insurer in the vet's presence. You need a 12-digit ear tag and two photos: the animal with you, and with its tag showing.
- Claims: none in the first 21 days. If the animal dies, tell the insurer at once and send the policy, the claim form and the post-mortem report. If you sell the animal, the policy moves to the buyer.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Kisan Credit Card
- Official name: Kisan Credit Card (KCC), with interest help under the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme.
- Run by: banks; in Tamil Nadu, milk societies also arrange KCC loans (Dairy Policy Note 2026-27).
- Who can apply: farmers, including dairy and tenant farmers, self-help groups and joint liability groups (PIB, 11 March 2026).
- What it gives (checked 25 October 2026): credit for feed, vet care, labour, water and electricity: ₹20,000 a cow a year in Tamil Nadu's 2026-27 scale of finance (SLBC Tamil Nadu). Interest is 7%, with up to 3% off for repaying on time (PIB, 28 May 2025). For dairy-only loans this help was stated up to ₹2 lakh for 2025-26, and the general limit later rose to ₹5 lakh, so ask your bank which limit applies now. No collateral up to ₹2 lakh (RBI).
- From 1 January 2027: new KCC loans become one six-year card for crops, dairy and investment (RBI, 19 June 2026). The dairy limit follows your district's scale per animal; a shed and buying animals can be included; there is no collateral up to ₹2 lakh (₹3 lakh with a repayment tie-up, if the bank agrees); and insurance premium can be paid from the card. Older loans keep the old rules until renewal.
- How to apply and documents: at your bank, milk society or a KCC camp; Common Service Centres help with the form. Keep Aadhaar, a photo, your passbook and any land papers ready.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Bank loan for milch animals
- Run by: commercial, cooperative and regional rural banks; in Tamil Nadu, milk societies and TABCEDCO too.
- Who can apply: each bank decides.
- What it gives: a term loan for animals, a shed and equipment, judged on NABARD's indicative unit costs and your quotations; see Dairy farming costs and income: a worked example.
- How to apply and documents: take KYC, land or lease papers, quotations and a simple dairy plan to your branch.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Rashtriya Gokul Mission
- Official name: Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), with the Nationwide Artificial Insemination Programme (NAIP).
- Run by: the Government of India, through state agencies.
- What it gives (checked 25 October 2026): RGM has ₹800 crore for 2026-27 (Union Budget 2026-27). NAIP gives free AI at your door (PIB, 19 March 2025); in Tamil Nadu it runs in 13 districts: Thiruvannamalai, Virudhunagar, Villupuram, Chennai, Cuddalore, Kanchipuram, Nagapattinam, Pudukkottai, Ramanathapuram, Sivagangai, Vellore, The Nilgiris and Tiruvallur (Policy Note 2026-27). RGM also pays up to 50% of the cost of sex-sorted semen when a pregnancy results (PIB, 5 August 2025).
- Who can apply and how: ask your veterinary dispensary, AI worker or milk society. See Cow and buffalo breeding: heat signs, AI and calving.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Cattle shelters under VB-G RAM G
- Official name: Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), VB-G RAM G: the rural jobs scheme that replaced MGNREGS from 1 July 2026 (PIB, 11 May 2026).
- Run by: village panchayats and block offices.
- Who can apply: individual works go first to SC, ST, women-headed and other priority households, then to small and marginal farmers with a job card (Tamil Nadu Gazette, 29 June 2026).
- What it gives: cattle shelters are on its list of works. 2026-27 costs were not published; old MGNREGS shed costs no longer apply.
- How to apply: ask your village panchayat or block office.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
- Karnataka: the Ksheeradhare incentive for milk poured to KMF societies is ₹5 a litre on KMF's page, unchanged since 19.11.2016 (KMF). Ask your society for the current amount.
- Kerala: the Dairy Development Department takes online applications for its yearly schemes, such as cow units and sheds, at https://ksheerasree.kerala.gov.in (for 2026-27, from 23 October to 7 November 2026); contact your block Dairy Development Unit (Kerala Dairy Development Department).
- Andhra Pradesh: we found no official state milk incentive or milch animal scheme on 25 October 2026; ask your district animal husbandry office.
- Telangana: an undated district page lists a ₹4 a litre cash incentive for milk poured to Vijaya societies (Mahabubnagar district); ask your society whether it is paid now.
- Central schemes (KCC, RGM, NADCP, and NLM insurance where open) apply in every state.
Outside Tamil Nadu? Ask your state's animal husbandry department or the nearest government veterinary hospital about the schemes there.
Rules change — confirm with your nearest veterinary hospital or animal husbandry office.
Apply safely
- Apply only at your bank, milk society, veterinary dispensary, the animal husbandry office or an official portal, and keep the acknowledgement number.
- Do not spend money expecting a subsidy until it is sanctioned. Work out your numbers in Dairy farming costs and income: a worked example first.
