Lagatar24 Desk
Ranchi: Chief Secretary Alka Tiwari emphasized that all cooperative sector initiatives in Jharkhand should align with the state’s interests and benefit the maximum number of people. She made this statement while presiding over the State Cooperative Development Committee meeting on Monday.
Tiwari instructed that plans for cooperative development must utilize state resources effectively and cater to the needs of the majority. Addressing the issue of opening new cooperative bank branches, she directed that banks should first strengthen their existing structures before pursuing expansion. She further advised against adopting projects that could become a financial burden on the state.
Progress In Digitization And Procurement
• 1270 LAMPS-PACS Online: Out of 1500 selected LAMPS-PACS, 1270 have been digitized and made online. The remaining 230 will be digitized by March 31. A proposal to digitize an additional 2949 LAMPS-PACS has been submitted to the Government of India. Those already online have been instructed to function as Pragya Kendras with Jharkhand Seva login IDs.
• Rice Procurement: By January 25, 2025, 13.06 lakh quintals of rice had been procured from 724 paddy procurement centers. Efforts are underway to operationalize the remaining 75 centers to meet targets.
Fisheries And Dairy Progress
• Fish Production: In FY 2023-24, 2.57 lakh tons of fish were produced against a target of 3 lakh tons. This is slightly lower than the 2.80 lakh tons produced in FY 2022-23. Efforts are being coordinated between the Cooperative and Fisheries departments under the Amrit Sarovar Mission to form fisheries cooperatives in every district.
• Milk Cooperatives: Of the target to register 100 primary dairy cooperatives for FY 2024-25, 65 have been registered, while 37 proposals are under process.
Key Discussions
The meeting discussed various initiatives, including warehouse construction, allotting rooms to LAMPS-PACS, opening retail petrol and diesel outlets, establishing Jan Aushadhi centers, fertilizer licensing, and developing LAMPS-PACS as PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras. Plans to upgrade the new Cooperative Training Institute into an Institute of Cooperative Management were also deliberated.
Attendees
The meeting was chaired by Chief Secretary Alka Tiwari and attended by Agriculture Secretary Abu Bakar Siddique, Finance Secretary Prashant Kumar, Revenue Secretary Chandrashekhar, Rural Development Secretary K. Srinivasan, Registrar of Cooperative Societies Suraj Kumar, and other senior officials.
