Prepare roadmap to set up state cooperative college: CM | Lucknow News
Lucknow: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday directed officials to prepare a roadmap to set up a State Cooperative College in Uttar Pradesh to promote study, teaching, and research in the cooperative sector.Stating that cooperatives must become gateways for youth employment in agriculture, dairy, fisheries, and services, the CM said: “In the first membership campaign held in 2023, over 30 lakh new members joined, including 17.33 lakh farmers, 3.92 lakh unskilled workers, 1.56 lakh skilled workers, 2.20 lakh livestock farmers, and 6,411 fish farmers.”“They together contributed Rs 70 crore to the cooperative sector. The second campaign should be more extensive, with camps, online and offline registrations, and awareness programmes organised in villages,” he added.The chief minister was reviewing the state’s cooperative department in the presence of Union Minister of State for Cooperation Muralidhar Mohol, who lauded Uttar Pradesh’s achievements as “exemplary for other states”. Discussions were also held on Multipurpose Primary Agricultural Credit Society (mPACS) membership, with the CM stating how important it was to connect all farmers and rural families with cooperatives. A special month-long campaign to add members to mPACS was also launched on Friday. The ministers were informed that in the current financial year, 457 new mPACS have been formed against 266 in 2024-25. In addition to this, organisational processes are underway in 1,088 village panchayats. An official said that mPACS have been provided with an interest-free credit limit of up to Rs 10 lakh for fertiliser distribution, resulting in a turnover of Rs 5,400 crore and a margin money of Rs 120 crore. The govt is also providing Rs 1 lakh in margin money for the upgrade of 757 newly formed mPACS, and Rs 1 lakh for basic infrastructure development.While discussing cooperative banking reforms, it was noted that from 2017-18 to 2024-25, the state govt revived 16 closed district cooperative banks, providing them with assistance of Rs 306.92 crore. The NPA of these banks reduced from Rs 800 crore in 2017 to Rs 278 crore by March 2025. By March 2025, a loan business of Rs 1,000 crore was seen, and all banks became profitable.The Food Corporation of India has identified 96 sites in 35 districts of the state for food storage. The CM said that the financial closure process should be completed by November 15, 2025, with construction to be started in January 2026 and completed by April 2026. He stated that warehouse construction is fundamental to farmers’ prosperity and should be given top priority.To facilitate digital payments, QR/UPI-based systems have been implemented in 6,101 societies. The CM also suggested that Jan Aushadhi Centres should be established near hospitals and that cooperatives become gateways for employment opportunities for youth in agriculture, dairy, fisheries, and service sectors.
