Anand, Sep 12 : The high-stakes Amul Dairy elections in Anand enter their final stage on Friday, with the counting of votes that began at 9 am.

The process, spread across eight rounds at four counting centres, will decide the fate of 24 candidates contesting for nine seats on the Board of Directors. Results are expected to be announced by 3 pm.

Voting for the elections was held on September 10, recording an impressive 97.48 per cent turnout. Later, ballot boxes were transported from the District Treasury's strongroom to Amul Dairy's counting centre under tight security.

Counting will take place simultaneously at four centres, with four tables assigned to handle the ballots.

Officials will open the boxes, extract the ballot papers, and tally votes candidate-wise. Cancelled ballots will be displayed before candidates and agents before being set aside for final verification.

The process will begin with counting for the Anand, Borsad, Petlad, and Khambhat seats, followed by Nadiad, Matar, Kathlal, and Kapadvanj. Finally, votes of individual members will be tallied.

The elections have generated excitement among cattle farmers of Anand and Kheda districts, with large gatherings of supporters and candidate families expected at the dairy premises to witness the results.

Amul Dairy, headquartered in Anand, Gujarat, is the flagship cooperative under the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) and a central pillar of India's dairy sector. With an annual group turnover crossing Rs 55,000 crore (over USD 6.5 billion), it is not just India's largest dairy brand but also among the world's biggest milk cooperatives.

Founded in 1946 and often credited with ushering in India's 'White Revolution' under the leadership of Dr. Verghese Kurien, Amul transformed India from a milk-deficient country into the world's largest milk producer.

Its cooperative model, which links over 36 lakh milk producers across 18,000 villages in Gujarat, has become a global case study in farmer empowerment and rural development.

Beyond being a household brand with products ranging from milk and butter to ice cream and cheese, Amul's relevance lies in its role as a socio-economic backbone, ensuring stable incomes for farmers, driving rural employment, and positioning India as a dairy powerhouse in global markets.

/IANS