National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED), the premier agency for procurement pulses and oilseeds has been going from strength to strength. Nowhere was it more apparent than at the 62nd Annual General Body Meeting (AGM) where the strides that the organisation had made during the past one year came to the fore.

Speaking about the same, the Managing Director Sanjeev Kumar Chadha, IFS tabled a detailed account of business activities undertaken by NAFED during the year 2018-19 before the General Body. Top on the list was the record procurement of oilseed and pulses under Price Support Scheme and other initiatives in buffer stocking of the pulses and onion under Price Stabilisation Fund of Government of India.

Chadha also appraised about the purchase and opening of new NAFED office spaces in different States. He thanked the Government of India for showing confidence in the organisation by recognising and selecting NAFED for procurement of apple crop from Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 from the state of Jammu & Kashmir.

Chadha also appreciated the contribution of Government of India and its different Ministries in recognising the efforts of NAFED and entrusting it with larger responsibility. He also thanked all the Board Members, delegates, Officers and Staff for their sincere efforts and cooperation in achieving the present status of NAFED.

Earlier in the day Dr Bijender Singh, Chairman, NAFED welcomed the delegates and expressed his gratitude and thanked Narendra Singh Tomar, MOS for Agriculture, Parsottambhai Rupala, Secretary (A&C), Additional Secretary (A&C) and other senior officers in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare for their guidance and support.

The Chairman also expressed his deep sense of gratitude and thanked the Prime Minister for his intervention as a result of which NAFED could arrive at One Time Settlement with the banks and emerge from the crisis that it had been in for the past few years.

He also recalled the key role played by Late Arun Jaitley, the then Finance Minister for the same. Dr Singh also appreciated the Member Federations/Societies, hard work put in by the Managing Director and his team of officers and staff of NAFED for the massive procurement undertaken by NAFED and announced the proposal of a dividend of 12 per cent to the member Federations/Societies for the year ending 2018-19.