Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun/Pantnagar (US Nagar), 21 Sep: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami today addressed the inaugural session of the second Cooperative Leadership Training Class organised by Sahakar Bharati Uttarakhand at Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar, through virtual mode from his residence in Dehradun. Paying tribute on the birth anniversary of Sahakar Bharati’s founder Laxmanrao Inamdar on the occasion, he said that such training programmes play a vital role in strengthening cooperatives and thereby reinforcing the rural economy. He remarked that strong leadership will strengthen M-PAX, strong M-PAX will strengthen villages, and strong villages will lead to a prosperous Uttarakhand.
The CM observed that several important initiatives have been launched from Pantnagar to give new direction to the cooperatives. These include the release of the Sahakar Granth, the initiative of Devbhoomi Sarathi State Cooperative Federation, introduction of new courses in the cooperative sector, a social media reels campaign to connect youth with cooperatives, and the commencement of M-PAX leadership training programmes. He also extended his best wishes to the Cooperative Department, GBPUAT and Sahakar Bharati for these efforts. He said that the state government aims to push Uttarakhand rapidly towards prosperity through cooperatives. He noted that in a hill state like Uttarakhand, cooperatives can become an effective means of addressing many challenges, including checking migration, strengthening mountain agriculture, providing markets for local products and empowering the rural economy.
Dhami also emphasised that PACS are the cornerstone of the cooperative system in the State and are being upgraded into M-PAX to make them more capable and effective in line with changing needs. The government is working to provide better facilities to farmers, create new opportunities for youth and strengthen rural areas economically through M-PAX. He stressed that effective leadership is essential to make M-PAX successful and that the leadership training programme has been initiated with this objective. Training, he said, is not merely a means of enhancing knowledge but also a powerful medium to provide leadership with new thinking, vision and direction.
The CM also claimed that connecting farmers, youth and women with cooperatives is a priority of the state government. Efforts are being made to transform cooperatives from being confined to committees into an effective medium of public participation and economic empowerment.
On this occasion, Cabinet Minister Dhan Singh Rawat, Vice-Chancellor of Govind Ballabh Pant University Prof Dr Shivendra Kumar Kashyap, Sahakar Bharati’s National General Secretary Deepak Chaurasia, State President Vinod Kumar Gaur, Organisation Minister Maniram Nautiyal, State Treasurer Sudhir Kumar Joshi along with Brijesh and Dinesh Kumar Singh also participated.
