Thiruvananthapuram | Milk cooperative major Milma on Wednesday decided to increase the price of milk by Rs 4 per litre in Kerala with effect from June 1, officials said.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Kerala Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (KCMMF), popularly known as Milma, here, they said.

Milma Chairman K S Mani told reporters after the meeting that the major share of the price hike would be passed on to dairy farmers.

"It has been decided to increase the price by Rs 4 per litre from June 1. As Milma is a collective of farmers, the decision is to pass on its lion's share to them," he said.

According to him, 83.75 per cent of the increased amount would go to farmers.

Of the total hike of Rs 4 per litre, dairy farmers would get Rs 3.35, while cooperative societies and vendors would also receive an adequate share, Mani said.

He further said that Milma was taking only a nominal share of the increased amount without reducing the share given to farmers.

The Left government had earlier approved Milma's recommendation for a price revision, but the hike was not implemented due to the model code of conduct in force during the elections, sources said.