New Cooperation Policy expected to be unveiled in July this year

NEW DELHI: The much-awaited new cooperation policy is expected to be unveiled in July this year to deal with the changed economic scenario, Ministry of Cooperation said on Monday. The new policy will be unveiled after consulting all the stakeholders including state governments, central ministries and departments as well as National Cooperatives, it said.

The expected time was informed in a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah here earlier on Monday. The Chairman of the National Level Committee for drafting new National Cooperation Policy document Suresh Prabhu, former Union Minister, also made a presentation to Shah in the meeting which was attended by other committee members including Dileep Sanghani, Chairman, National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI); K V Shahji, Chairman, NABARD; Jyotindra Mehta, Chairman, NAFCUB and others.

Secretary (Cooperation), Additional Secretary (Cooperation) and senior officers of Ministry of Cooperation were also participated in the meeting. The Committee members also briefed Shah about the objectives, vision and mission of the draft policy along with key recommendations in various sectors including structural reforms and governance, cooperatives as vibrant economic entities, level playing field for cooperatives, sources of capital and funds, inclusion of priority sections, use of technology, upskilling and training, sustainability and implementation plan.

During the meeting, the Minister of Cooperation gave his guidance on how to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji's vision of 'Sehkaar se Samriddhi' and to strengthen the Cooperative movement at the grassroot level through the new policy. "As per the guidance received from Minister of Cooperation, the Committee will prepare a revised draft. The new Cooperation Policy is expected to be unveiled in July, 2023 after consulting all the stakeholders including state governments, central ministries and departments, and National Cooperatives," said the Ministry.

The National Level Committee for drafting New National Cooperation Policy was formed on September 2, 2022 with a view to prepare a new National Policy to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'Sehkaar se Samriddhi' under the leadership of Shah. The current policy on cooperation was formulated in 2002 and there is a felt need to draft a new policy to deal with the changed economic scenario. The drafting Committee, chaired by Suresh Prabhu, comprises of 49 members drawn from all over the country and various stakeholders such as officers of cooperation department of various state governments, ministries and departments concerned of central governments, institutions like IRMA, RBI, National federations like IFFCO, NCCF, NAFCARD, NAFCUB, KRIBHCO, NFCSF, NCUI, NAFED, representatives from Cooperative Societies in various sectors, academicians and experts.

The process of forming new National Cooperation Policy was initiated when the concept was discussed in the conference of state cooperation secretaries held on 12th and 13th April, 2022 and State Cooperation Ministers held on September 8 and September 9, 2022 which were inaugurated by the Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation. More than 500 suggestions were received from various stakeholders and general public for the draft policy document. The National level Committee after its formation held more than eight meetings and also consulted various stakeholders to prepare the draft document.