Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah today announced that NAFED will soon begin direct procurement from farmers, eliminating intermediaries from the agricultural production process. He was speaking at a national seminar held in Mumbai on the occasion of the International Year of Cooperatives. Mr. Shah expressed confidence that this move will help farmers get fair prices for their produce. He also stated that the government will soon launch an insurance company based on the cooperative model. The Union Minister informed that two lakh new Primary Agricultural Credit Societies will be established across the country. Mr. Shah expressed confidence that in the next ten years, large cooperative institutions will emerge in three key areas, exports, organic food, and seeds, which will make a valuable contribution to improving farmers’ quality of life. On this occasion, five NAFED products were launched, and grants or shares were distributed to five farmer producer companies by dignitaries.