Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday emphasised the need to link cooperative movement to circular economy and promote international collaboration in the sector.
Addressing the ICA Global Cooperative Conference 2024 at the Bharat Mandapam here, Modi said that for India, cooperatives are the basis of culture and a way of life.
He further said India sees a huge role for cooperatives in its future growth and in the last 10 years the country has worked to transform the entire ecosystem related to cooperatives.
“Our effort is to make cooperative societies multipurpose,” he said, adding that with the objective in mind, the government of India created a separate cooperative ministry.
Modi said cooperatives are also playing a key role in the housing sector as well as in the banking segment.
There are about 2 lakh housing cooperative societies in the country.
He said the government has strengthened the cooperative banking sector and reformed it.
“India is among the fastest growing economies in the world. Our aim is to achieve high GDP growth and take the benefits to the poor. It is necessary for the world to see growth from a human-centric angle,” he said.
Stressing that there is a big opportunity for cooperatives in the world, Modi said there is a need to make cooperatives as flag bearers for integrity and mutual respect in the world.
“For this, we need to innovate our policies and strategize. To make cooperative climate resilient, we need to link it to the circular economy. We need to discuss ways to encourage startups in the cooperative sector,” he added.
Presently, about Rs 12 lakh crore are deposited in cooperative banks.
The Prime Minister also informed the gathering that his government is committed to further strengthening the cooperative movement, and about 2 lakh additional multi-purpose cooperative societies are being set up in villages.
He also lauded the role being played by women in furthering the cooperative movement, saying about 60 per cent of the members are women.
Modi said India believes that co-operativeness can provide new energy to global cooperation and can help countries, particularly in the Global South, achieve the kind of growth they need.
