The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) was established in 1965 as a society. In 1987, NDDB was constituted as a body corporate by vesting undertakings of the Indian Dairy Corporation in it and was declared an institution of national importance by an Act of Parliament. NDDB has been playing a pivotal role in developing the dairy sector of the country over the past six decades by nurturing and promoting producer-owned institutions with the objective of improving the livelihoods of crores of dairy farmers, the majority of whom are landless, marginal or small.  

NDDB launched Operation Flood, the world's largest food-aid-for-development program, transforming India into the world's leading milk producer. To prepare cooperatives for the evolving economic landscape following India's liberalization, NDDB introduced the 'Perspective Plan 2010' in 2000. This strategic initiative laid the groundwork for the National Dairy Plan (NDP), also known as Mission Milk, launched in 2012 to meet the growing demand for milk. The success of this project was evident, as it received a "Highly Satisfactory" outcome rating — the highest awarded to World Bank-funded projects.  

Building on this momentum, NDDB is actively implementing various schemes like Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), Central Sector Scheme for Formation and Promotion of 10,000 FPOs, National Livestock Mission, JICA and more. In addition to these efforts, NDDB oversees several wholly-owned subsidiaries, including Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable Private Limited, IDMC Limited, Indian Immunologicals Limited, NDDB Dairy Services, NDDB Mrida Limited, and NDDB CALF Limited. All these subsidiaries contribute to the growth and modernisation of India's dairy sector.