Cooperatives must keep up with the times by combining technology and professionalism in order to progress into the future. Today is a day to modernise the cooperative sector, channelize the spirit of cooperation and contribution among people, create equality among communities, and show them the way to co-prosperity, said Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Monday. He was speaking as the chief guest at the celebrations for the 100th International Day of Cooperatives in New Delhi.
The main theme of the event was “Creating a Self-Reliant India and a Better World Through Co-operatives.” The event was attended by Union Dairy and Fisheries Minister Purushottam Rupala, Minister of State for Cooperation B. L. Verma, former Union Minister Suresh Prabhu, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation Gyanesh Kumar, ICA-AP President Dr Chandra Pal Singh, NCUI President Dilip Sanghani, and many other dignitaries associated with cooperatives across the country.
Amit Shah said that that more than 12% of the world’s population is associated with cooperatives. Out of 30 lakh cooperative societies in the world, 8.55 lakh are in India and about 13 crore people are directly associated with them. Three Indian cooperative societies, Amul, IFFCO, and KRIBHCO, are among the 300 largest cooperative societies in the world. The Narendra Modi government has transferred profits of Amul, IFFCO and KRIBHCO directly to farmers’ bank accounts. India has given the idea of cooperatives to the world. There are 91% villages in India which have some form of cooperatives working in them, Shah noted.
