Mumbai, June 20 (UNI) Cooperation is the soul of India’s way of life, said Union Minister for Cooperation Amit Shah in Mumbai on Friday.



He was speaking at the ‘Sahakar Se Samriddhi’ National Symposium organized at Hotel Fairmont today.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Cooperation Minister Babasaheb Patil, Agriculture Minister Adv. Manikrao Kokate and several others were present.



Shah said that UN has declared 2025 as the ‘International Year of Cooperatives’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a historic step by establishing a separate Ministry of Cooperatives in the country. Now the aim is to establish two lakh new Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) in the country, he said.

He further said that information about cooperative societies in every village across the country has been collected through a digital database, and Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka have made remarkable achievements in the cooperative sector.

PACS societies will now not be limited to agriculture alone but will operate in 22 new service sectors. These include Jan Aushadhi Kendras, gas distribution, petrol pumps, railway ticketing services, taxi services.

In the “National Taxi” initiative, the taxi drivers will be the owners of the vehicle and their profits will be deposited directly in their bank accounts, he said.

This initiatives will create new employment opportunities for women and youth, and will boost the rural economy. The country is moving towards a new era of cooperation said Shah.

Speaking on occasion, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Maharashtra has successfully implemented various schemes in rural areas through PACS and FPOs (Farmer Producer Organizations). These schemes have given a boost to employment generation and have provided a market chain to farmers. Maharashtra has fulfilled the objectives of the central government more efficiently, Fadnavis said.

He further said that Maharashtra has a 120-year tradition of cooperation and this historical land is to celebrate the International Year of Cooperation.

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