Verghese Kurien

Verghese Kurien (26 November 1921 – 9 September 2012) was an Indian dairy engineer and social entrepreneur. He led initiatives that contributed to the extensive increase in milk production in India termed as the White Revolution.

Kurien graduated in physics from the University of Madras in 1940 and received his masters in mechanical engineering from the Michigan State University in 1947. In 1949, Kurien was sent by the Government of India to run its experimental creamery at Anand, where he set up the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers' Union in 1950 which later became Amul. Amul organised the dairy farmers in the villages as a part of cooperatives and linked them to the milk consumers directly, eliminating the need for middlemen.

In 1965, Kurien was appointed as the head of the newly formed National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which helped to set up similar cooperatives across India and made dairy farming one of the largest self-sustaining industries and employment generators in rural areas. The dairy cooperatives were successful in increasing the milk production as the dairy farmers controlled the procurement, processing, and marketing as the owners of the cooperative. This led to a multi-fold increase in milk output over the next few decades and helped India become the world's largest milk producer in 1998. The co-operative model was later applied to other agricultural industries in India such as the production of edible oils and replicated in other countries.

For his contributions in increasing the dairy output, Kurien is known as the "Father of the White Revolution" in India. He was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1964 and the World Food Prize in 1989. In 1999, he received the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour. He was conferred the Order of Agricultural Merit by the French Government in 1997.

Kurien was born on 26 November 1921 in Calicut, Madras Presidency, British India (now Kozhikode, Kerala, India) in a Malayali Syrian Christian family. His father was a government civil surgeon and Kurien did his schooling at Diamond Jubilee Higher Secondary School at Gobichettipalayam, where his father worked at the government hospital there. He graduated in physics from Loyola College in 1940 and received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the College of Engineering, Guindy affiliated to the University of Madras in 1943.

Kurien wanted to join the Indian army as an engineer but instead he worked with Tata Steel Technical Institute in Jamshedpur. Kurien applied for a scholarship provided by the Government of India to study metallurgical engineering but instead received a scholarship to study dairy engineering. He was sent to train at the Imperial Institute of Animal Husbandry in Bangalore before being sent to the United States on a government scholarship. He graduated with a master's degree in mechanical engineering from the Michigan State University in 1948. Kurien had stated that though he was sent on a government scholarship to study dairy engineering, he studied metallurgical and nuclear engineering, disciplines which were likely to be of far greater use to the soon-to-be independent India and to himself.

In 1949, Kurien was sent by the government of India to its experimental creamery at Anand in Bombay province (currently in Gujarat). He spent the evenings helping Tribhuvandas Patel with fixing the dairy equipment used for processing the milk procured from the local farmers. Earlier in 1946, Patel had set up a cooperative at Kaira. It was formed as a response to the exploitation of small dairy farmers by traders and agents, who set arbitrary milk prices on behalf of Polson, which had an near-total monopoly in milk collection from Kaira. Kurien wanted to quit the government job and leave Anand but was persuaded by Patel to stay with him to help with his dairy cooperative.

Kurien developed the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers' Union Limited (KDCMPUL) further which later became Amul. Milk collection was decentralised and was directly procured from the farmers at villages as a part of the cooperatives. Kurien and Tribhuvandas Patel were supported by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Morarji Desai to help organise the dairy farmers. Kurien worked on the belief that economic self-interest of all sections of the village-society would make them align together to grow their cooperative and remove caste or class conflicts. The cooperative dairying venture was expanded to the nearby districts and was involved in the training of dairy students. By 1952, the daily milk procurement reached 20,000 litres from a mere 200 litres per day in 1948.