NCDC’s Sahakar Pragya - Initiative for Development of Cooperative Sector

The 45 new training modules of Sahakar Pragya of the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) will impart training to primary cooperative societies in rural areas of the country along with Laxmanrao Inamdar National Cooperative Research and Development Academy (Linac). 

Sahakar Pragya Initiative [UPSC Notes]:-Download PDF Here

This initiative is important for candidates preparing for the upcoming IAS Exam as questions based on the same may be asked in the GS 3 paper under the Government policies and agriculture part of the syllabus. 

UPSC aspirants can also check the List of Government Schemes in India which have been launched for the social, economic, and fundamental development of the country.

What is the Sahakar Pragya Initiative?

Sahakar Pragya initiative mainly aims at strengthening the cooperative sector of our country by imparting knowledge and skills to the rural population of India. 

Given below are a few major objectives of this initiative:

• 45 new training modules of Sahakar Pragya of NCDC will be training the cooperative societies in rural India
• Farmers will be trained by the primary cooperatives to educate them about minimizing the risk in agricultural activities
• It will also boost the cooperative sector to act as a shield between the farmers and the unscrupulous traders
• Enhancement of NCDC’s training capacity through a network of 18 Regional Training Centres across the country will also be established

Objective of Sahakar Pragya

The training modules under Sahakar Pragya Initiative aim at imparting knowledge as well as organizational skills. They also attempt to prepare the primary cooperative societies all over the country to be able to play a major role in the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.

This programme is in terms with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan and aims to educate and impart knowledge to the poor farmers of the country and make them self-aware and independent. 

The table given below gives the basic details about the Sahakar Pragya initiative which a competitive exam aspirant must be aware of:

Significance of Sahakar Pragya

India has a huge network of over 8.5 lakh cooperative societies with around 290 million members. The cooperative sector has been successful in lending help to the farmers in various ways. This can also be said as almost 94% of India farmers are a part of one or the other cooperative society. 

Cooperatives lend strength to the farmers in minimizing risks in agriculture as well as allied sectors and also act as a shield against exploitation by traders. Cooperatives play a major role in Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Thus, boosting the cooperative sector to make the rural population of the country aware and reduce risk factors, Sahakar Pragya is of great significance.

Other Sahakar Initiatives by NCDC

Sahakar Pragya is not the only initiative that has been taken up by National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC), there are a few other programmes and initiatives which were launched.

Discussed below are the same in brief:

• Sahakar-22
  • Aims to provide new employment opportunities for farmers through cooperatives
  • Another objective of this initiative is to develop cooperatives in the focus 222 districts and other aspirational districts
• Sahakar Mitra
  • It is a Summer Internship Programme (SIP)
  • Students and young professionals to be hired as interns to gain work experience and give them opportunities to deliver innovative solutions for the cooperative sector
  • Visit the Sahakar Mitra Scheme page to learn more about this NCDC initiative
• Yuva Sahakar
  • It aims to attract aspirational youths and their youth-friendly schemes for the development of the cooperative sector
• Ayushman Sahakar
  • Aims to assist cooperatives in the creation of healthcare infrastructure in the country
  • Under this scheme, the establishment, development, expansion, renovation, etc. of hospital and healthcare infrastructure to be covered

About National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC)

• It was established by an Act of Parliament in 1963 as a statutory Corporation under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
• Its main function is planning, promoting, and financing the production, processing, and marketing of different agricultural activities through cooperatives
• It is also responsible to assist different types of cooperatives and their financial bases

About Laxmanrao Inamdar National Cooperative Research and Development Academy (Linac)

• Laxmanrao Inamdar National Academy for Cooperative Research and Development (LINAC) is NCDC’s own training institution which was set up in 1985
• Ever since LINAC was set up, it has trained more than 30,000 people from cooperative societies. Its main aim is Entrepreneurship and Business Development in Cooperative Sector
• The Academy endeavors to develop its programmes and interventions with a strong client-orientation and inter-disciplinary perspective to strengthen institutional capabilities and human resources in cooperatives

The 45 dedicated training modules will equip the cooperative societies in running their affairs in absolute professional business terms of the market economy.

Sahakar Pragya Initiative [UPSC Notes]:-Download PDF Here

Since the rural population and farming activities are a major source of economic development for India, the Government has set up Sahakar Pragya to train and educate the rural population through the cooperative sector of the country. 

For candidates who are preparing themselves for the upcoming Civil Services Exam, the latest UPSC Syllabus and exam pattern has been discussed in detail at the linked article. Aspirants can check the comprehensive and detailed section-wise syllabus and prepare themselves accordingly.

Furthermore, all government exam aspirants can check the best Preparation Strategy for the Competitive Exams at the linked article and enhance their performance.

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