Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav today said that India’s strong network of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), comprising 32 crore people, provides the country with resilience against any global economic crisis. Addressing the ‘Cooperative Chintan Shivir’ organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), the Minister said that cooperatives promote not only economic growth but also democratic empowerment. Mr. Yadav emphasised that the cooperative sector plays a vital role in social empowerment and inclusive development.

The Minister stressed that in the journey towards building a developed India, the role of cooperatives would not remain confined to dairy, agriculture, or initiatives such as Bharat Taxi, but would expand to various critical sectors through multipurpose agencies. Mr. Yadav added that this expansion would help boost self-employment and enhance income levels, thereby increasing scale and further strengthening the country’s economy.

Highlighting the importance of youth and women-led PACS, Mr. Yadav called for placing them at the centre of digital and data-based governance and stressed the need for their skill development to accelerate the Digital India initiative.