Dehradun: The Cooperative Fair has begun in the capital. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the cooperative fair. During this time, CM Dhami distributed checks of Rs. 5 lakh each as interest-free loans to women’s cooperatives and women’s self-help groups.
The United Nations General Assembly had declared 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives. Under this initiative, cooperative fairs are being organized across the state. In this context, a cooperative fair was also organized in the capital Dehradun in view of the International Year of Cooperatives 2025 and the Silver Jubilee year of the formation of Uttarakhand state. It was inaugurated by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday.
During the program, the Chief Minister said in his address that the cooperative fair is not just a display of products, but a powerful symbol of Uttarakhand’s cooperative strength, rural self-reliance and self-respect. Cooperation has been a fundamental principle of the Indian way of life, where individuals rise above their self-interest and work for the collective good of society. The CM said that in today’s competitive era, the role of cooperation has become even more important. Keeping this in mind, the United Nations has declared 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives.
The CM said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the formation of a separate Ministry of Cooperation in the country to realize the resolution of prosperity through cooperation is a historic decision, which is being strongly pursued under the leadership of Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah. Uttarakhand state has become a leading state in the country in cooperative reforms. The computerization of multi-purpose cooperative societies across the country started from Uttarakhand. Under this, all 670 cooperative societies of the state have become digital.
He said that earlier farmers used to run around offices, but today they are connecting with all services through mobile phones. This is the difference between the Congress’s paper model and the BJP’s ground-level model. The Chief Minister said that cooperative societies are no longer limited to just providing loans, but are also providing affordable medicines through Jan Aushadhi Kendras, and offering insurance, pension, electricity bill payment, Aadhaar, and other digital services through Common Service Centers.
Under the Deendayal Upadhyaya Cooperative Farmers Welfare Scheme, farmers, women’s self-help groups, and cooperative institutions are being made self-reliant by providing interest-free loans. Emphasizing women’s empowerment, the Chief Minister said that special priority has been given to women’s cooperative societies and self-help groups, enabling lakhs of women to become “Lakhpati Didis” (women earning over a lakh rupees) and setting a new example of self-reliance.
