RAJKOT: “Can you even clean cow dung?” snapped Dr Shyama Gondalia’s parents when she decided to

her flourishing dental practice to start a gau shala along with three of her cousins in 2017.

One of the cousins, Ajay Patel, an IIM-Ranchi pass out, also quit a job of Rs 18 lakh per annum with India’s leading business conglomerate for this venture. The other two — Shyama’s brother Mohit, a mechanical engineer, and Prashant Patel, a software engineer — too faced stiff opposition over this sudden career switch.

But the foursome were firm on their decision to take up cow breeding, which they felt could uplift the rural economy if taken up by qualified professionals. The cousins now run the gau shala spread across 14 acres of land in Kankot village, some 15 km from Rajkot, and have 25 indigenous breeds of cows that yield upto 150 litres milk per day.

“My family had serious societal concerns. They felt only rural folks are cut out for animal husbandry,” said Ajay, 31, who specialized in strategy and marketing from IIM.

For six months, they have been selling 125-150 litres of cow milk to select customers under their own brand name.

“We read that the number of high quality Gir cows are very limited while indigenous breeds are more valued in foreign countries. Several studies have showed that if cow breeding is taken up professionally, it can not only be a profitable business but also boost the rural economy,” added Dr Shyama, 30, who had a clinic on Mavdi road.

The cousins purchased 25 cows from Gondal, Junagadh and Bhavnagar and a pedigree bull from Porbandar with a total investment of Rs 50 lakh. “Laboratory tests showed that the cows gave A2 quality which is considered very healthy.”

Plans afoot to expand milk business in Ahmedabad, Vadodara

There are 11 heifers, 12 calves and 25 milking cows living in dedicated sheds. None of the cows are tied and they graze around in the open.

Mohit, who quit his managerial job in India’s biggest corporate house, said, “In a developed country like Switzerland, people have understood the importance of grazing. India has earmarked land for this purpose for people who understand the value of grazing, which ultimately helps get good quality milk.”

The four now plan to expand their milk business to Ahmedabad and Vadodara.