NE BUSINESS BUREAU
NEW DELHI, JULY 14
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah inaugurated the National Mega Conclave on FPO in the cooperative sector and released the action plan for formation of 1,100 new FPOs by PACS in New Delhi on Friday.
Amit Shah said the contribution of agriculture and allied sectors to the country’s GDP can be further enhanced by strengthening marketing, for which Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) are the key.
- Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah releases action plan for formation of 1100 new FPOs by PACS
- Modi Government has made full arrangements from the Production to Marketing for the FPO made through PACS
- Agri, allied sectors contribution to GDP can further rise on strengthened marketing: Amit Shah
- If agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries are strengthened through cooperatives, employment opportunities will increase along with the GDP
Addressing a conclave here, the minister said agriculture can become a profitable business if modern technology and marketing methods are adopted. Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) can help in this endeavour.
Shah said FPOs formed by PACS are more capable to provide benefits to farmers compared to FPOs set up by individuals, companies and partnerships. He also asked existing FPOs to have an agreement with PACS.
Shah noted that agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries sectors are the backbone of the Indian economy. The growth in these sectors will not only help in increasing GDP but also create job opportunities.
In his address, Amit Shah said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the decision to set up a separate Ministry of Cooperation with a different vision. He said that the cooperative movement in our country is very old, but after 75 years of independence, when we look back, it seems that the cooperative movement in the country got divided into many parts. He said that from the point of view of cooperatives, the country can be divided into three categories – states, where the cooperative movement has been successful in advancing and strengthening itself, states, where the cooperative movement is still going on, and States, where the cooperative movement is almost dead.
Shah said that it does not matter whether one has capital or not, but if one has the courage and passion to work hard and the ability to take oneself forward, then the cooperative movement is a great medium for making such people prosperous who lack capital. He said that the cooperative movement can make a significant contribution towards strengthening the country’s 65 crore people associated with agriculture and making them prosperous by combining their small capital through cooperatives and turning into a big capital.
Shah said that if PACS becomes an FPO, then the benefits of FPO will reach to all the farmers of PACS. He said that FPOs formed through PACS have the maximum potential to make the farmers prosperous. In the coming days, Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Cooperation will work together with the mantra of three-pronged rural development and prosperity through PACS, FPOs and SHGs. He said that if PACS want to become FPO then NCDC can help them and there is no limit for this and this conclave will further speed up the cooperative movement in the country.
Minister of Cooperation said that during the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the budget allocation for agriculture sector has increased by 5.6 times. He said that while in the year 2013-14, the agriculture budget was of Rs 21,000 crore, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it has increased to Rs 1.15 lakh crore in the year 2023-24. He said that earlier the combined budget was Rs 21,000 crore, but now the budget of Ministry of Agriculture alone is Rs 1.15 lakh crore. This showcases the priority given by the Prime Minister and the government to agriculture.
On this occasion Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister of State, Ministry of Cooperation BL Verma, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, Gyanesh Kumar and Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Manoj Ahuja were also present along with several dignitaries.
