Harichand Megha Dalaya

Harichand Megha Dalaya (22 October 1921 – 14 September 2004) was the inventor of the first spray-dryer for buffalo milk in the world. His invention revolutionized India's dairy farming industry (Operation Flood) and laid the foundation for Amul cooperative's immense success.

In 1944, he graduated from the Pune Agriculture Engineering College, Pune. In 1948, he acquired a master's degree in Dairy Technology from Michigan State University, Michigan. In 1950 he completed the Advanced Business Management Program from the Harvard Business School in Boston. H. M. Dalaya believed otherwise and was determined to prove so.

Technological breakthrough In 1955, his keen technological knowledge and engineering capabilities resulted in the installation of the patented Spray Dry Equipment, the world's first buffalo milk spray-dryer, at Amul Dairy in Gujrat.

H. M. Dalaya was the silent force behind the success of Amul. While Tribhuvandas Kishibai Patel is regarded as its "father" and Verghese Kurien as its "son", H. M. Dalaya is considered its "holy ghost" whose contribution changed the future of Indian dairy farming.