NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the Global Cooperative Conference 2024 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. PM Modi also launched the United Nations’ International Year of Cooperatives 2025 and released a commemorative postal stamp. On this occasion, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah, the Prime Minister of Bhutan, the Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji, the President of International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), and several other dignitaries were present.
On this occasion, Shah said in his address that the UN’s decision to observe 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) is a timely step and will prove to be a blessing for millions of poor people and farmers worldwide. He added that the inauguration of the International Year of Cooperatives-2025 by the PM on Monday and the hosting of the International Cooperative Conference of the ICA in India is a welcome step.
Shah said that PM Modi three years ago gave the clarion call of “Sahkar Se Samriddhi” which reflects the essence of theme of this conference, which paved the way for the prosperity of millions of villages, women, and farmers. He said that in previous three years, many new activities have taken place in the cooperative sector of India, and after 75 years of independence, India’s cooperative movement has experienced a revival, bringing with it a new zeal.
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that in next three years, through 2 lakh new Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), there will not be a single village panchayat in India without a cooperative society. He said that many steps have also been taken to make PACS modern, tech-enabled and economically-viable.