To help cooperatives in India and abroad innovate and adopt best practices to not only stay competitive but also distinguish themselves as successful commercial entities, a policy recommendation handbook on SAHAKAR PRAGYA Good Practices for Cooperatives was released here .
The handbook which was jointly released by ICA AP President Dr Chandra Pal Singh Yadav and NCUI President Dileep Sanghani is based on a ‘Brain Storming Session on International Good Practices Platform for Cooperatives’ conducted earlier by Laxmanrao Inamdar National Academy for Cooperative Research and Development (LINAC) of NCDC. After releasing the document, newly elected ICA AP (International Cooperative Alliance Asia and Pacific) President Dr Chandra Pal Singh Yadav underlined that “the cooperatives have inherent advantages in tackling the problems of poverty alleviation, food security, and employment generation—a path to self-reliance.
“ This has also been reflected during the Covid-19 times. I am certain that this handbook will be a beacon of light for many cooperatives looking to contribute to Atmanirbhar Bharatie self-reliant India.”
Yadav who is the first Indian to head ICA Asia-Pacific as its President, was of the view that energy of the youth should be channelized for the development of the country through the cooperatives. “If we showcase success stories of the cooperatives among them, they will be encouraged to venture into the cooperative sector and become job providers instead of job seekers in the corporate world.”
India has more than 8 lakh registered cooperative societies, especially in the agricultural and agri-allied sector, banking and housing sectors. MD NCDC Sundeep Nayak and National President Sahakar Bharati DN Thakur were also present at the event.
A compendium of guidelines, resources, methodologies, key learning, case studies of the best performing cooperatives in India and abroad and the outcome and impact, the handbook would serve as an action plan that can help these entities to achieve the goal of self-reliance.
On the occasion, NCDC-LINAC and ICAAP also signed a pact intending to assimilate and develop further on the core strengths, experience and institutional objectives of the respective parties in the interest of advancement of research, study, documentation and training for development of the cooperative sector.
Dileep Sanghani said, “It is heartening to note that, taking a cue from Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah, NCDC-LINAC and International Co-Operative Alliance Asia And Pacific (ICA AP) have come together to set up a platform to share their wide experience and ideas for transmitting Indian good practices of cooperatives abroad and vice versa.”
“The handbook has been developed by LINAC-NCDC in consultation with eminent experts and leading organizations in the domain of cooperatives. The consultation process for the Handbook was initiated in November 2021 inspired by the ideas of the Union Cooperation Minister,” said Nayak.
The final format also included focused group discussions covering best practices adopted by several cooperatives in the country as in abroad which helped them deftly sail through the economic gloom posed by Covid-19 pandemic.
Some of the best practices were from milk, credit and banking co-operatives in the handbook, details which are aligned with the Government’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
The cooperative movement in the country has regained focus after the Union Government recently created the Ministry of Cooperation to provide a separate administrative legal and policy framework for streamlining the cooperatives, said Nayak.
The Government is also in the process of framing a new cooperative policy and proposes to work in tandem with states to strengthen the cooperative movement which are now being considered as an important plank of development.