India, Sept. 27 -- Amidst the brouhaha over tariff wars and GST 2.0, not too many noticed the fall of possibly the last political bastion of the Congress party in Gujarat. Last year, during my election tour across the country, I stopped at Anand, the de facto headquarters of Brand Amul (producer of milk and milk products, and known for the iconic Amul girl's advertisements). Throughout the nation, the talk was about the forthcoming national elections, and whether the ruling BJP could miraculously win more than 400 seats in Lok Sabha.

However, the buzz at Amul's Anand was different. People animatedly talked about dairy cooperatives, the lifeline and money-life of the area. At Kaira District Milk Producers' Union, possibly the largest dair...