Pune (Maharashtra), Feb 8 (IANS): Well-known agro-industrialist Dattatraya Bhaskar Chitale, alias Kakasaheb, head of the Chitale Dairy Farms, passed away at Miraj, Sangli on Saturday afternoon, official sources said.

He was 78 and is survived by his wife Sunita, sons Girish and Makarand and daughter Veena Sahasrabuddhe.

Late on Friday night, he suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to a private hospital for treatment, but could not survive.

The 81-year-old Chitale Dairy which Kakasaheb Chitale spearheaded for several decades, is ranked among the oldest and most reputed farm products institutions in the country.

The company was launched in their house backyard in Bhilawadi (Sangli) village in 1939 by his father, the late Bhaskar Ganesh alias Babasaheb Chitale, and after his demise, son Kakasaheb took over the reins and built it into a globally-recognised household brand.

From its ultra-modern plants that deploy 'cloud technology', the dairy farm produces around 300,000 litres of milk everyday which supports more than 50,000 farmers and looks after 2,00,000 cows and buffaloes.

The milk is sold all over the state, besides the entire range of dairy products like butter, paneer, cheese, ghee, khoya, shrikhand, lassi, milk powder, bakarwadi, etc. under the Chitale brand.

Besides the family's agro-businesses, Kakasaheb was deeply involved in a variety of social, cultural, educational and public welfare activities around Maharashtra.