Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Amit Shah announced the establishment of a cooperative life insurance company and launched a series of digital and infrastructure initiatives during the 5th Foundation Day ceremony of the Ministry of Cooperation at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on July 6, 2026. The event marked five years since the creation of a dedicated Union Ministry for the cooperative sector, which was established on July 6, 2021, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Sahakar Se Samriddhi” (Prosperity through Cooperation). With over 152 major initiatives launched in this period, the Ministry has worked to modernise, digitise, and expand India’s vast cooperative network.
Five Years of the Ministry of Cooperation
The Ministry of Cooperation was carved out of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on July 6, 2021, becoming the first dedicated central ministry for the cooperative sector after 75 years of independence. Before its creation, cooperatives were handled as part of the agriculture ministry without focused policy attention. The ministry is headquartered in New Delhi and operates under the leadership of Union Minister Amit Shah, with Ministers of State Krishan Pal Gurjar and Murlidhar Mohol.
Addressing the gathering, Shah said the Ministry has infused new energy into the lives of nearly 30 crore people associated with the cooperative sector. He noted that the decision to create a separate ministry ended decades of structural neglect and gave the cooperative movement a fresh institutional foundation. Shah emphasised that the Centre’s role is policy-making and not interference in state subjects, pointing out that even Congress-ruled states have not complained about central overreach in five years.
The Ministry has built an integrated National Cooperative Database (NCD) covering over 8.58 lakh cooperative societies across 30 sectors, with information on audit status, turnover, grading, and village-level presence. This database helps states identify coverage gaps and plan expansion. Shah also announced a national ranking framework to recognise top-performing cooperative societies across sectors, promoting healthy competition and transparency.
Cooperative Life Insurance Company: A New Frontier
A key announcement at the ceremony was the government’s plan to establish a cooperative life insurance company to expand the reach of cooperatives into the financial services sector. Shah said the new entity will follow the model of Bharat Taxi, India’s first cooperative-based mobility platform, which has demonstrated that cooperative enterprises can compete with private players. The insurance company is expected to leverage the vast grassroots network of cooperatives to improve insurance penetration, particularly in rural and underserved regions where formal insurance coverage remains low.
India’s insurance penetration stands at 3.7%, significantly below the global average. The industry collected premiums worth ₹11.93 lakh crore and paid claims of ₹8.36 lakh crore during 2024-25. The government has already undertaken major insurance sector reforms, including raising the FDI limit to 100% under the Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha Act, 2025, and removing 18% GST on individual life and health insurance policies from September 2025. The proposed cooperative insurer will complement these reforms by using the cooperative channel to reach members in remote areas.
Shah also announced that Bharat Taxi, which currently has 6.37 lakh registered drivers and 35.77 lakh registered customers across seven cities, will be expanded to 500 cities over the next two years. He noted that the fertiliser cooperative IFFCO already operates in the insurance sector through a joint venture with a Japanese firm, showing the viability of cooperative participation in this space.
Expanding Grain Storage Infrastructure
A major focus of the event was the strengthening of cooperative storage infrastructure. Amit Shah oversaw the transfer of 135 godowns with a combined capacity of 75,000 tonnes, the inauguration of 85 godowns, and the laying of foundation stones for 47 new grain storage godowns. These godowns are part of the government’s larger strategy of creating the world’s largest decentralised grain storage plan through cooperatives, aimed at reducing post-harvest losses and enabling farmers to store produce locally for better market timing.
Under the decentralised grain storage plan, godowns have been completed in 145 PACS, creating storage capacity of over 68,702 metric tonnes so far. The expansion of storage infrastructure at the cooperative level is critical for India, where post-harvest losses in grains remain significant due to inadequate storage facilities at the village level.
The event also witnessed the Bhoomi Pujan (groundbreaking ceremony) of Sahakar Van, a green initiative by Amul and the National Cooperative Consumers Federation (NCCF) , along with groundbreaking for tissue culture facilities of the Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) at Barabanki in Uttar Pradesh and Jalgaon in Maharashtra. These tissue culture facilities will help produce high-quality planting material for farmers through the cooperative network.
Digital Transformation of the Cooperative Ecosystem
50,000 PACS Converted to e-PACS
The single biggest digital milestone announced at the ceremony was the transformation of 50,000 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) into e-PACS. PACS are the grassroots-level units of the short-term cooperative credit structure and serve as the first point of contact for rural financial services. Their digitisation marks a fundamental shift in how rural credit and services are delivered.
The computerisation of PACS is being implemented with a total financial outlay of ₹2,925.39 crore, increased from the initial ₹2,516 crore in 2022. As of June 2026, 79,630 PACS have been sanctioned for computerisation, of which 63,428 are already using the common ERP software, available in 14 languages. Hardware has been delivered to over 65,000 PACS, and online audits have been completed in more than 42,700 PACS. The target is to complete computerisation of 63,000 PACS by March 31, 2027.
PACS have also diversified far beyond their original credit function. Currently, 54,117 PACS function as Common Service Centres offering more than 300 services, including railway ticket booking, birth and death registration, applications for government schemes, and digital payments. 39,177 PACS operate as Kisan Samriddhi Kendras, 4,248 PACS are approved for Jan Aushadhi Kendras, and 394 PACS have applied for retail fuel outlets. Model bye-laws adopted by 32 states and UTs now allow PACS to undertake over 25 business activities, transforming them into multi-service rural hubs.
New Digital Platforms for Dairy and Banking
Two major digital platforms were launched to modernise cooperative banking and dairy operations. The Milk Supply Review Dashboard Portal for the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) was launched to improve the management of milk procurement and distribution across the country. This portal will provide real-time data to help dairy cooperatives optimise their operations.
The National Urban Cooperative Finance and Development Corporation (NUCFDC) unveiled two flagship initiatives. Sahakar CBS is a centralised Core Banking Solution designed specifically for Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) , enabling them to offer modern banking services on a shared technology platform. Sahakar Sahyogi is a conversational AI-powered platform that enhances customer service and banking operations for UCBs, bringing them on par with commercial banks in digital capability.
The government also launched NCD 3.0, the third version of the National Cooperative Database portal, along with a geo-tag mobile application to map cooperative assets and infrastructure geographically for better planning and monitoring.
New National Institutions and Capacity Building
Since its creation, the Ministry has established three new national-level multi-state cooperative societies to expand the sector’s reach into exports, organics, and seeds. National Cooperative Exports Limited (NCEL) serves as an umbrella body for cooperative exports, recording 15.4 lakh metric tonnes of exports worth ₹6,295 crore to 38 countries as of June 2026. National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) handles aggregation, certification, and marketing of organic products, with 14,286 member cooperatives. Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) produces and distributes quality seeds under the “Bharat Beej” brand, with 38,665 member cooperatives. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between BBSSL and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) during the event to strengthen seed systems through research collaboration.
On the capacity building front, the government has established Tribhuvan Sahkari University (TSU) in Anand, Gujarat, as India’s first national cooperative university. Named after Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel, the founding chairman of Amul, the university was created by converting the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA) into a university of national importance through an Act of Parliament passed in April 2025. Spread over 125 acres with an estimated cost of ₹500 crore, the university aims to train over 8 lakh professionals annually through degree, diploma, and PhD programmes in cooperative management, banking, agribusiness, and allied fields. The university has already launched three new MBA programmes in Cooperative Management, Cooperative Banking and Finance, and Agribusiness Management.
The National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) has continued to drive investments in the sector. During FY 2025-26, NCDC sanctioned ₹1.55 lakh crore and disbursed ₹1.27 lakh crore, including ₹2,320 crore disbursed to Farmer Producer Organisations under the FPO promotion scheme.
Key Takeaways
- The Ministry of Cooperation was established on July 6, 2021, completing five years of dedicated institutional focus on the cooperative sector under the vision of “Sahakar Se Samriddhi” .
- The government announced the establishment of a cooperative life insurance company, following the model of Bharat Taxi, which will be expanded to 500 cities in two years.
- 135 godowns were transferred, 85 inaugurated, and foundation stones laid for 47 grain storage godowns as part of the world’s largest decentralised grain storage plan.
- 50,000 PACS were converted into e-PACS, with 63,428 PACS currently using ERP software and 42,700+ having completed online audits.
- Two digital platforms for cooperatives were launched: Sahakar CBS (centralised core banking for UCBs) and Sahakar Sahyogi (AI-powered customer service platform), along with the Milk Supply Review Dashboard Portal for NDDB.
- Tribhuvan Sahkari University in Anand, Gujarat, India’s first national cooperative university, has been established to train professionals for the sector, with a new campus spread over 125 acres at a cost of ₹500 crore.
