Secy. Ashish Bhutani reviews initiatives and strategies for Cooperative sector in Shillong

Shillong (Meghalaya): Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani,  Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, addressed the inaugural session of the two-day National Level Review Meeting in Shillong, Meghalaya. The review meeting, held on  April 10-11,  discussed initiatives and formulation of strategies to further strengthen and modernise the Cooperative Sector across the country.

Speaking at the inaugural session, Dr.  Bhutani said that under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and the guidance of   Minister of Cooperation  and HM  Amit Shah, the ministry is committed to promoting cooperative-led economic growth with robust inter-state cooperation to realize the vision of “Sahakar Se Samriddhi.”  He stressed on collating the PAN numbers of all cooperative societies of the country to enable more accurate representation of the cooperative sector in the national GDP. Dr. Bhutani reaffirmed the Government’s unwavering commitment to strengthening and advancing the cooperative ecosystem in the country.

The White Revolution 2.0  is one of the flagship initiatives, aimed at rural upliftment through the dairy sector. He said that the dairy sector has shining examples of how dairy can empower women and improve child nutrition. We are partnering with institutions like Amul and NDDB to support states  of Assam, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and others  in expanding dairy infrastructure. The economic potential of animal husbandry now exceeds that of traditional crop cultivation.

Dr. Bhutani said that passing of the bill to establish India’s first Tribhuvan Sahkari University is a historic move. This university will standardise cooperative education across states and uplift over 250 existing cooperative institutions.

Secretary alongwith   Chief Secretary,  Meghalaya, along with senior officials, took part in a tree plantation drive under the initiative “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” initiative in International Year of Cooperatives.

The meeting brought together key stakeholders including representatives from States and Union Territories, officials from cooperative federations, financial institutions, and policymakers, fostering a collaborative platform for knowledge exchange and strategic alignment.

The focus areas of the two-day sessions were on expansion of banking services for cooperative societies and ensure doorstep banking services via micro-ATMs along with provision of zero-interest loans through RuPay Kisan Credit Cards to members of Primary Agriculture Credit Societies (PACS), Dairy Cooperative Societies and other Cooperative institutions, and strengthening of Rural Cooperative Banking. Expansion of time-bound establishment of Multi-Purpose Agriculture Cooperative Societies (MPACS), Dairy and fishery cooperatives, Grain Storage Plan, digital transformation of PACS and Agriculture and Rural Development Banks (ARDBs) with an aim to improve transparency, operational efficiency, and service accessibility was also discussed. An analytical discussion was also held on the impact of NCDC’s schemes and the realignment of its strategic direction with broader national development priorities.                                        (with inputs from PIB)