Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah, who headed the first National Cooperatives Conference of the newly formed Ministry of Cooperation on 25 September, stated that cooperatives will play a crucial part in making India a $5-trillion economy. He further added that cooperatives will work towards unlocking the potential of the rural economy as the country recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Union Minister asserted, “I promise your Modiji that co-operative sector will contribute immensely to your dream of a $5-trillion economy.”
Dispelling the concerns and questions regarding the relevance of the cooperative movement launched by the Centre, Shah commented that “Many people raise questions on the effectiveness of cooperative measures, they say that cooperative movements are of no relevance, let me tell you, if the cooperative movement was ever most-relevant then it is today.”
“It is necessary for the development of those deprived of benefits, women who have been neglected, Dalits, those from backward classes, and thousands of farmers in India. The scope of work has to be increased, and has to bring in discipline.”
He highlighted that the concept of cooperation can never go irrelevant, affirming that he has been involved with the cooperative movement for 25 years.
The Union minister made several other announcements laying out the roadmap for the new department for strengthening the cooperative movement backed by the Centre. He stated in his address that the Centre will soon come out with a new cooperative policy and work in tandem with states to strengthen the cooperative revolution in the country.
The Sehkarita Sammelan, or the National Cooperative Conference, which was organised by some of India’s leading cooperative organisations like IFFCO, the National Cooperative Federation of India and Amul etc, was attended by a gathering of over 2,100 representatives from different cooperatives and was broadcast live to over 6 crore online viewers across the globe.