Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah launched the National Cooperative Database (NCD) on Friday, March 8, 2024, in New Delhi. The NCD is an online digital dashboard that captures vital information about India’s vast cooperative sector. It serves as a crucial tool for efficient communication between the Central Ministry, States/UTs, and Cooperative Societies, benefiting all stakeholders in the cooperative sector.
The NCD is another important initiative of the Ministry of Cooperation to fulfill Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Sahakar se Samriddhi”, which means prosperity through cooperatives. The Ministry of Cooperation was constituted on July 6, 2021, with a mandate to strengthen cooperative movement in the country and deepen its reach up to grassroots level.
The NCD covers data of about 8 lakh cooperative societies across various sectors such as agriculture, dairy, fisheries, housing, credit, thrift, labour, marketing, etc. The data was collected in a phased manner from the State/UT Governments, National Federations, and other stakeholders. The NCD provides a single point access to information on cooperative societies, their vertical and horizontal linkages, their geographical spread, their performance indicators, and their contribution to the economy.
The launch of the NCD was attended by around 1400 participants including Secretaries and other senior officers of Central Ministries/Departments, Additional Chief Secretaries/Principal Secretaries of Cooperation from States/UTs, RCS, Cooperative Societies, and Cooperative Federations/Unions across the country. A technical workshop was also organized to brief and enlighten the participants about the use and application of the NCD and its potential to improve the cooperative landscape in India.
Shah also released the ‘National Cooperative Database 2023: A Report’, which presents an overview of the cooperative sector in India based on the data collected till March 31, 2023. The report highlights the achievements, challenges, opportunities, and best practices of the cooperative sector in India.
Shah said that the NCD will help in promoting the expansion of the cooperative sector by providing timely and accurate data for planning, policy making, and implementation. He said that the NCD will also help in identifying gaps and addressing them through appropriate interventions. He said that the NCD will facilitate greater transparency, accountability, and governance in the cooperative sector.
Shah congratulated the Ministry of Cooperation and all the stakeholders for developing the NCD in a short span of time. He said that the NCD is a milestone in the cooperative sector and a reflection of Prime Minister Modi’s vision of cooperative federalism and “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas”.
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