Amit Shah Announces Cooperative Life Insurance Company To Expand Cooperative Sector

Union Home Minister and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Monday announced that a cooperative life insurance company will be set up to strengthen the cooperative sector and expand its presence in the insurance industry.

Addressing a programme marking the fifth Foundation Day of the Ministry of Cooperation , Shah said the proposed insurer would be established on the lines of Bharat Taxi , a cooperative initiative that has performed well and is expected to expand to 500 cities within the next two years .

Shah said the Ministry of Cooperation has provided a fresh impetus to India's cooperative movement over the last five years. He noted that the country has around 8.5 lakh cooperative societies and more than 30 crore members , making it one of the largest cooperative networks in the world.

Highlighting key reforms, the minister said the government has worked to bring transparency, professionalism and better governance to cooperatives. A nationwide database of cooperative institutions has also been created to support policy planning and sectoral expansion.

He pointed out that cooperatives are now expanding beyond traditional areas such as dairy, sugar and fertilisers. Referring to Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited , Shah noted that the fertiliser cooperative is already involved in the insurance sector through a joint venture with a Japanese company.

The minister also highlighted the establishment of Tribhuvan Sahkari University in Anand, Gujarat, aimed at addressing the sector's human resource requirements and strengthening professional capacity.

During the event, Shah inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for several cooperative infrastructure projects. These included the transfer of 135 grain storage godowns with a capacity of 75,000 tonnes , the inauguration of 85 godowns , and foundation stones for 47 additional storage facilities . Groundbreaking ceremonies were also conducted for cooperative forestry initiatives and tissue culture facilities of Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Ltd in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

A major highlight was the conversion of 50,000 Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS) into e-PACS , aimed at digitally empowering grassroots cooperative institutions. An MoU was also signed between BBSSL and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to strengthen seed systems.

Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh said efforts are underway to organise the dairy sector, nearly 40 per cent of which remains unorganised. Shah expressed confidence that cooperatives would play a significant role in India's development journey and contribute to the goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047.