New Delhi: Initiating a comprehensive change in India's dairy cooperative sector, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday launched 'White Revolution-2.0'. He described it as a major initiative aimed at empowering women farmers and creating employment opportunities.

Inaugurating the Ministry of Cooperatives' 100-day series of various transformational initiatives at a national-level conference in New Delhi on Thursday, Amit Shah focused on four key areas. These include empowering women farmers, increasing milk production, strengthening the infrastructure of the dairy sector and encouraging milk exports.

There will be a significant increase in the livelihood of cow-herders

He also released a guideline related to cooperation among cooperative societies along with standard operating procedure for formation and strengthening of two lakh new PACS (Primary Agricultural Credit Societies), dairy and fisheries cooperative societies. He also gave the target of establishing one lakh new and existing district cooperative societies, multipurpose district cooperative societies and multipurpose PACS. He also assured that PACS will not be closed now.

Addressing the conference, Amit Shah said that dairy cooperatives will start purchasing one thousand lakh kilos of milk every day within the next five years. This will significantly increase the livelihood of farmers and cow-keepers. This will also expand the cooperative sector.

India ranks first in the world in milk production

He said that most of the women are working in the dairy sector. In Gujarat alone, a business of Rs 60 thousand crore is being done. This new initiative will give an edge to women in the fight against malnutrition. The milk cooperative sector will initially be funded by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) from its own resources, which will give Rs 40 thousand per pack to one thousand packs.

Amit Shah assured full budgetary support for the program and said that this is an area of ​​top priority for the government. Amit Shah said that the pace of development of villages has increased through cooperation. The creation of a separate ministry has given strength to the cooperative sector which was becoming irrelevant in villages and districts. In the seven decades after independence, due to the neglect of the central government, the cooperative movement in the country was becoming almost irrelevant. Keeping in mind the changes taking place in the administration, economy and other cooperative sectors, the changes that were needed were not made.

White Revolution-2.0 will increase farmers' income

Amit Shah said that there was a long standing demand for creating a separate cooperative ministry. The Modi government has fulfilled it. Its objective is to revive the cooperative sector in all villages and districts.

Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Panchayati Raj Rajiv Ranjan alias Lallan Singh said that people associated with fisheries and animal husbandry were not getting the benefits of government schemes. Due to this, White Revolution-2.0 was launched. White Revolution-2.0 will increase the income of farmers. India ranks first in the world in milk production. This has been possible due to almost double increase after Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister.