Punjab News Daily

Panchkula, December 24

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday addressed a Cooperative Conference organised by the Krishak Bharati Cooperative Limited (KRIBHCO) on the theme “Role of Cooperation in Sustainable Agriculture.” Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini and several other dignitaries were also present at the event.

 Addressing the gathering, Shah said that Haryana, deeply rooted in history, religion, spirituality and tradition, is steadily creating new avenues of farmers’ prosperity through the growing collaboration between agriculture and cooperatives.

He noted that, marking the International Year of Cooperatives, several initiatives were inaugurated at the conference, including a milk chilling centre, a flour mill of the Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Limited (HAFED), distribution of RuPay Platinum Cards, registration certificates for model Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), and the launch of a dedicated portal for the International Year of Cooperatives.

The Home Minister highlighted that nearly 70 per cent of India’s population lives in rural areas, with a significant portion directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture, farming and animal husbandry for their livelihoods.

He added that when agriculture and animal husbandry are treated as independent economic activities, they have the potential to generate large-scale employment and strengthen the rural economy.

He said the two sectors generating the maximum employment in the country are agriculture and animal husbandry.

Home Minister Shah said that “agriculture and animal husbandry were always viewed only from the employment perspective, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi by establishing the Ministry of Cooperation at the Centre gave a new mantra of prosperity through Cooperation”.