Nagaland guv calls for future-ready cooperative sector

Dimapur: Nagaland governor Nand Kishore Yadav on Friday called for a future-ready cooperative sector in the state, saying cooperatives could play a key role in inclusive growth, especially in dairy, fisheries, piggery, handloom and handicrafts, and organic agriculture.Speaking as the special guest at the COOPS Day and Cooperative Week celebration at Lok Bhavan in Kohima, held to mark five years of the Union ministry of cooperation, Yadav said the cooperative movement represented the spirit of self-help, mutual support and collective action.He said cooperatives played a transformative role in promoting inclusive growth and empowering communities across the country. The governor called for greater use of technology, youth participation, women-led enterprises and skill development to build professionally managed and market-oriented cooperatives.Yadav also highlighted the role of institutions such as the Nagaland State Cooperative Bank, the State Dairy Cooperative Federation and other cooperative federations in strengthening value chains and expanding market access for farmers and producers.He urged stakeholders to work together to build a prosperous, vibrant and self-reliant Nagaland through the spirit of cooperation.On the occasion, the governor virtually inaugurated four model cooperative society offices in different districts of the state.

PHED and cooperation minister Jacob Zhimomi said the cooperative sector wasplaying a silent but significant role in nation-building by strengthening grassroots economic development and empowering communities.He said the state govt was organising awareness programmes, cleanliness drives, plantation drives and activities in schools and colleges as part of Cooperative Week to instil cooperative values among the younger generation.Zhimomi added that efforts were underway to engage experts and professionals to develop market-oriented cooperative models in the state.