Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 18 Sep: The Uttarakhand State Cooperative Federation has set a target of expanding its business activities to achieve an annual turnover of Rs 3,000 crore. As part of its commercial plan, the Federation will soon launch its own bottled water brand, ‘Himala Jal’. Along with this, the Federation will establish various production units and set up 500 cooperative procurement centres across the state.
This was announced by the State Cooperation Minister, Dr Dhan Singh Rawat, during a cooperative conference organised at the Niranjanpur Cooperative Regional Office on the occasion of International Year of Cooperatives–2025. Speaking on the theme, “Economic Practices and Cooperative Institutions”, Dr Rawat said that the Uttarakhand State Cooperative Federation, which currently has a turnover of Rs 500 crore, is the state’s leading cooperative institution. It has now set an ambitious target of Rs 3,000 crore, under which new business activities will be launched across Uttarakhand.
The Minister stated that a mineral water plant will soon be set up in Haridwar district and bottled water will be launched in the market under the brand name ‘Himala Jal’. Additionally, an organic bio-fertiliser unit and a phenyl production unit will be established. He said that 500 cooperative procurement centres will be opened across the state where farmers will receive fair prices for their grains, fruits, and vegetables directly at the village level. This system aims to eliminate middlemen and ensure direct benefits to farmers.
Dr Rawat further announced that, during the upcoming Navratri festival, new business projects worth Rs 100 crore will be inaugurated. He also highlighted that, in all 95 blocks of the state, collective cooperative farming under the Madhav Singh Bhandari Cooperative Farming Scheme is being undertaken to convert barren land into cultivable fields. Traditional hill products such as red rice, kauni, jhangora, mandua, and millets are being branded and marketed under the “Local to Global” initiative.
Managing Director of the Federation, Anand Shukla expressed confidence that under the Minister’s guidance, the target of transforming the Federation into a Rs 3,000 crore institution will be achieved ahead of schedule. On the occasion, three short documentary films on business development projects were also presented.
The event was attended by former Chairman Matwar Singh Rawat, Pradeep Chaudhary, Umesh Tripathi, Anupam Kaushik (Managing Director, NCEL), JP Singh (BBCL), Joint Registrar Neeraj Belwal, Assistant Registrar Rajesh Chauhan, Monika Chunera, Manager Tribhuvan Rawat, GM, Resham Federation, Matwar Kandari, along with hundreds of cooperative members and officials from the Garhwal division. The programme was anchored by Managing Director Anand Shukla.
Schemes for Farmers, Women, and Students
Dr Rawat announced that the Uttarakhand Cooperative Bank will provide women with collateral-free loans of Rs 21,000 at 0% interest for one year. On timely repayment, this limit will increase to Rs 51,000 and subsequently to Rs 1,00,000 in the following years. Similarly, senior citizens will be provided interest-free loans of Rs 21,000 for Bharat Darshan and Char Dham Yatra. Meritorious students pursuing MBBS and technical education will be facilitated with low-interest education loans through national banks.
Cooperative Fairs to be held in the State
From 3 October to 30 December, seven-day cooperative fairs will be organised in all 13 districts of Uttarakhand. Through these fairs, 10 lakh farmers are to be connected with cooperative institutions. Membership registration will also be available through online platforms.
Distribution of Cheques to Beneficiaries
During the programme, cheques were distributed to beneficiaries through the District Cooperative Bank, Haridwar. Among them, women’s self-help groups ‘Anand’ and ‘Lakshya’ received cheques worth Rs 3 lakh each; groups ‘Ganga’ and ‘Jara’ received Rs 1 lakh each, while Smt. Saroj received a cheque of Rs 3 lakh as interest-free loans, handed over by the Cooperation Minister.
