India Marks UN’s International Year of Cooperatives 2025 with Focus on Grassroots Strengthening

India is observing the United Nations International Year of Cooperatives 2025 through an expansive national campaign led by the Ministry of Cooperation under the theme “Cooperatives Build a Better World.” 

The initiative, officially launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the ICA Global Cooperative Conference in 2024, aims to highlight the role of cooperatives in advancing inclusive, participatory, and sustainable development aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Image Source: Office of Amit Shah

A detailed annual action plan, released by Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah in January 2025, has been implemented with involvement from national federations, state governments, and cooperative institutions across the country. 

For streamlined coordination, the government has constituted National and State-level Committees while integrating IYC objectives into district and state cooperative development mandates.

Awareness and outreach have been central to the effort, with the IYC-2025 logo visible on railway e-tickets, government websites, Amul milk packets, and broadcasts of the Women’s Premier League 2025 across Star Sports and Jio platforms. 

Events have been held nationwide, including the inauguration of 25 PACS godowns in Bihar, a cooperative conference in Madhya Pradesh, and the golden jubilee of IFFCO Kalol in Gujarat, which also saw the foundation laying of a Beej Anusandhan Kendra.

A major milestone was the National Conference of State Cooperation Ministers held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on June 30, 2025. On July 5, the foundation stone of India’s first cooperative university, Tribhuvan Sahkari Vishwavidyalaya, was laid in Anand, Gujarat, followed by a national event marking the fourth foundation day of the Ministry of Cooperation.

States and Union Territories are actively participating in campaigns like “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam,” with 25 states submitting plans for a national plantation drive. Complementary efforts such as cleanliness drives under “Swachhta me Sahkar,” youth and women-led programs, cooperative exhibitions, and capacity-building sessions have also been conducted. A special July edition of Kurukshetra magazine was released to commemorate the year and highlight sectoral achievements.

The Ministry is in the final stages of developing benchmarking criteria and a Business Reform Action Plan for the cooperative sector for 2026 onwards. A consolidated annual report documenting activities throughout IYC-2025 will be published at year-end.

Parallelly, the Ministry has completed drafting a new National Cooperative Policy, guided by a high-level committee led by Suresh Prabhu. The policy was developed after 17 meetings and 4 regional stakeholder workshops and is expected to provide a roadmap for sectoral growth. 

In line with the government's plan to deepen grassroots reach, over 2 lakh new multipurpose PACS, dairy, and fishery cooperatives are to be established across India in the next five years.

Data from the National Cooperative Database indicates active progress, with 21 new PACS registered in Haryana as of June 30, 2025. 

The Ministry affirmed that while no new PACS were created in Haryana between April and June 2025, the broader momentum remains intact.

India’s observance of IYC-2025 underscores its intent to mainstream cooperative values in national development and strengthen grassroots economic resilience through collective, transparent, and accountable institutions.