Union Cooperative Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that a charter for the newly formed Cooperation Ministry was being prepared and the core idea of it would be sahakaar se samruddhi (cooperation to wealth).
He was speaking at the 75th year celebration of AMUL, the largest dairy cooperative sector of the country.
Addressing a large gathering, Shah said that he is confident that the cooperative sector will play a major role in India becoming a 5 trillion dollar economy. He said that the cooperative sector can also play a major role in making India “Atmanirbhar”.
The minister said a lot of changes were required in the cooperative sector and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had seen the need of doing that at the right time.
Appreciating the way AMUL has grown over the years, Shah said that the dream of 'white revolution' as envisaged by Lal Bahadur Shastri was in the sight of realisation. He, however, added that it is time for AMUL to look ahead.
Shah spoke about the efforts of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Tribhovandas Patel in setting up AMUL against the alleged exploitation by a private dairy. Shah also made a mention of how Dr. Varghese Kurien expanded AMUL further.
Citing an example of AMUL’s reach, he said that during his recent visit to Poonch, near Pakistan border, he was happy when a young girl gave him masala buttermilk of AMUL.
Movements, he said, are for bringing about a solution of the problem and not for creating problems. What began as a collection of only 200 litre of milk everyday has now become a sector in which 36 lakh farmers are associated, he observed. Shah also said that AMUL played a pivotal role in women’s empowerment after independence.
The minister emphasized that it was the need of the hour to make cooperative movement a strong pillar of the 5 trillion dollar economy.
He also urged the cooperative sector to come forward and strengthen the agriculture sector. Shah also pointed out that the cooperative sector can play a major role in doubling the income of farmers.
The minister also asked if someone could take the responsibility of testing organic crops and exporting them to international markets so as to enable the farmers to get more returns.
