Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched the Sahakar Cooptube NCDC Channel, a new initiative by National Cooperative Development Corporation with the aim to involve youth in the cooperative movement on Tuesday in Delhi.
Known for hand-holding co-operatives across the country with fund and project ideas, NCDC’s new initiative is aimed at simplifying the process of the formation of cooperatives across several states of the country.
Launching guidance videos which can also be called short films, produced by NCDC on ‘Formation and Registration of A Cooperative’ for eighteen different states in Hindi and regional languages, the Minister said cooperatives have a major role to play in the country in realizing the Prime Minister’s dream of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
Congratulating NCDC’s Design Studio for producing these guidance videos which are easy to follow and understand, Tomar said that the Union Government has recently announced a series of transformative measures and sector specific financial packages to help agriculture.
Appreciating the efforts of NCDC, the Minister said formation of new cooperatives is a prerequisite for bringing new life and dedication in the realm of cooperative movement. “The guidance videos in different languages covering 18 States would also strengthen and deepen the major initiatives of our Government to promote and form 10,000 FPOs”, the minister underlined.
NCDC has a major role in formation of FPOs in cooperative mode. More states would be added to the collection of guidance videos on the NCDC Sahakar Cooptube Channel in due course of time, underlined the Minister.
NCDC MD Sundeep Nayak had been busy for over six months giving concrete shape to this idea, as he told this correspondent in the last interview. His dream saw its fructification at the hands of the Minister on Tuesday.
Cooperation being a state subject, each state has its own legal framework and making videos encapsulating the state’s special legal requirements is a welcome step, said co-operators in Delhi. “Icing on the cake — NCDC got these short films on how to form and register co-ops produced in-house,” they stated.
If co-ops are important tools of achieving PM’s dream of a prosperous India, efforts must be made to make it easy for youth to form cooperatives, said Nayak. “Young people find it daunting to approach the authorities for registration of a new cooperative because of lack of information from a common source, Nayak said.
“Moreover, the related information is rarely available in simple and easily understandable manner for rural people who could form, register and manage cooperatives for their own socio-economic prosperity. Such videos will go a long way in helping them”, Nayak concluded.
Today India boasts a huge network of over 8.50 lakh co-ops having 290 million members. These lend strength to farmers to minimize risks in agriculture and allied sectors and act as shield against exploitation by unscrupulous trade.
“NCDC with its pan Indian presence, has been in the forefront creating the market linked business plan-based ecosystem in agriculture and allied activities. It has launched various initiatives and programmes like SAHAKAR-22 to develop cooperatives in Focus 222 districts including aspirational districts, Nurturing Primary Level Cooperatives, SAHAKAR MITRA – Scheme on Internship Programme, and YUVA SAHAKAR- Start Up Scheme in Cooperatives and SAHAKAR PRAGYA for capacity development through its premier national academy named after the great cooperator, Shri Laxmanrao Inamdar”, claimed a press release sent by the NCDC.
“Beginning with meagre disbursement of Rs.2.36 crore in 1963, NCDC disbursed around Rs.28,000 crore during 2019-20 and it has made an unprecedented progress in the last six years by achieving 83% of the cumulative financial assistance calculated since 1963, during these last six years alone”, the release added.
