Since the last few weeks I have been in the USA. While sitting with a group of NRI friends well settled here, we heard the sad news about the sudden demise of Dr Verghese Kurien on 9th September. Those who knew him and those not knowing much about him but knowing “Amul” very well, all of them were shocked.

I narrated how not only thousands of milk producing female farmers  of Gujarat, but also each and every co-cooperator in India must have  felt as well as  the  iconic “Amul Girl” wept  on losing her father.

The big void created by the passing away of the “Milkman of India” will have to be filled, though only partly, through our rededication towards adopting all those principles preached and practiced by Dr Kurien.

His book “I Too Had A Dream” and also a collection of his speeches “An Unfinished Dream” need to be read once again to imbibe his principles.

Creating our Brand Equity, rendering Quality Service, giving Value for Money to all our stake-holders, Financial Self Reliance and not the least, a firm Commitment to Co-operative Principles would be our real tribute to Dr Kurien.

Neglect of the Co-operative model of enterprise vis-a-vis Private and Public model by our planners right from the post-independence days is the basic woe of the co-operative sector of India.

But we, the co-operative workers are also equally responsible for the plight and deterioration of our sector.

Our movement must be totally free from political influences. It should not be seen and used as a ladder to political positions either.

On behalf of the oldest urban co-operative bank of our country, the Cosmos Bank, running in its 106th year, I offer heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family of Dr Kurien.

May God give us all a strong will and courage to fearlessly follow Dr Kurien’s philosophy in our respective co-operative activities.

- Dr M L Abhyankar

Chairman Emeritus, Cosmos Co-op Bank

(The writer is a leading cooperator of India and a member of Malegam Committee)

Amul Dairy (Kaira Milk Union) and GCMMF have decided to build a memorial to Vergese Kurien on Amul dairy campus to remind people of him and his great achievements. The memorial would especially seek to preserve such artefacts and details of Kurien’s life and activities as would inspire the coming generations.

The cooperative organisations that would erect the memorial are of the view that Kurien has been one of the most remarkable personalities in the post-independence India and his achievements have had an enormous mass appeal.

It is therefore in the fitness of things that his legacy and the ideas he adhered to throughout his life are preserved.

Sources say the basic decision on erecting the memorial has been reached but the actual activity of building the structure would be dealt with later.

Dr Verghese Kurian was a believer in the importance of cooperative leadership in protecting, preserving and exemplifying the values of cooperation against those who seek power and patronage.

He transformed India from a milk deficient country into one of the biggest milk producers in the world. Under his able leadership Anand became the milk capital of the country where Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and Institute of Rural Management, (IRMA) are located.

His vision of the dairy cooperative sector links over 10 million farmers at 200 dairies across the country producing more than 20 million litres of milk everyday. He was awarded Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Magasaysay Award and other National and International awards.

His biggest contribution was to unite millions of women and farmers in the Dairy Cooperative sector and create a brand known as AMUL. As Chairman of NDDB he began Operation Flood that spanned more than 2 decades and eventually ushered in the white revolution in the country.

Many countries replicated the Anand Model and became self-reliant in milk and milk processing industries. Thanks to his efforts, Institute of Rural Management Anand was set up for R & D and training on various aspects of management of rural cooperatives.

The IRMA has been a totally unique institution giving impetus to young brains to understand rural development and issues of farmers. He stood like a rock against bureaucratic difficulties at different points of time to ensure the growth of GCMMF and NDDB. He nurtured these organisations and developed a second line of command.

The ultimate tribute to Dr. V. Kurien would be to protect and preserve what he stood for throughout his life. The cooperative movement in India is at a crossroads. It is the duty of us cooperators to build and strengthen a genuine cooperative movement in the country to project the interests of farmers and other weaker sections of society.

(Mr Eknath Thakur is the Chairman of Saraswat Bank, the biggest cooperative bank of India)

BY H.K.Patil

Dr Kurian, in my opinion would rank among the top Indians in the post -independence India, whose contribution to the betterment of lives of our countrymen, particularly the farmers, has been immense.

His efforts have resulted in transforming India from a milk deficient and milk starved nation to become the largest producer of milk in the world. His famous expression is “I am in the business of empowerment. Milk is just a tool in that”.

Dr Kurian’s story of entry into milk and cooperative sector and his Anand saga is very well documented. His journey from being a young technology man having reluctantly come to the interiors of Gujarat to become a messiah of millions of villagers is truly inspiring.

I am personally amazed and impressed by the fact that how a combination of true co-operator and an open minded technocrat having a common desire to empower people can achieve the unbelievable.

For Shri Tribhovandas Kishibhai Patel, a cooperative leader and a true Gandhian with a strong desire to improve lives of villagers in Gujarat through cooperatives and for Dr.Kurian, then a young technocrat finding himself to be in a nondescript place called Anand, coming together has been a game changer, not only for themselves, but for the State and the Country.

It would be our fortune if we get many more such combinations of cooperative leaders and technocrats who can take on the might of multi nationals and corporate, in coming years when India is expected to grow into an economic powerhouse.

Anand model of Dr Kurian is the best alternative to corporate and for ensuring equitable distribution of fruits of growth.

While he empowered millions of his countrymen through cooperatives, the fact that Dr.Kurian chose milk as the vehicle of empowerment ensured that majority of those empowered were women.

“White Revolution” by the most famous “Milkman” known in history is a story that will make every Indian proud.

Dr Kurian’s discomfort with corridors of power and bureaucracy is well known. Late Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri as PM, impressed with Amul Model, wanted Dr Kurian to create an institution that would replicate the model in other parts of the Country. This was the genesis of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).

While accepting the responsibility of setting up the institution, Dr.Kurian put a condition that the Board be headquartered in Anand, away from the bureaucratic interference of Delhi, to which Shastriji readily agreed.

NDDB played a very important role in creating awareness about the Amul model and inspired them to replicate it in other states. In later years he handed over reins of the Board to his protégé Ms .Amrita Patel, who has chartered a course for NDDB in a style which has been different from Dr.Kurian’s, but nevertheless successful.

Dr Kurian was also instrumental in creating another fine organisation, IRMA (Institute of Rural Management),that has developed over the years into one of the respected management institutes in the country.

It was an unequal battle in 1949 when the milk cooperatives in Anand decided to take on the then market leader in dairy products, called POLSONS which was known to be exploiting farmers, by creating a new brand image AMUL. They succeeded hugely and wiped out the corporate which was a household name.

Dr. Kurian also ensured that the biggest beneficiary out of the business of milk and milk products was the farmer who sold the milk to his local cooperative. Although today a large number of private players have entered the dairy sector, but nevertheless the system of pricing that benefits the farmers that has been benchmarked by Amul and NDDB is being followed by all.

Dr.Kurian will be remembered by posterity as a person who not only believed in empowerment as instrument for growth and well-being of masses, but he also emphatically proved its efficacy by his deeds. The structures and systems he has created stand testimony of his dedication and his conviction.

May the Soul of this tireless crusader for empowerment rest in peace and let us all the co-operators rededicate ourselves to the cause of economic empowerment of the less privileged brothers and sisters through cooperatives.

By Amrita Patel

Verghese Kurien came to Anand more than 60 years ago after completing his graduation in the US, intending to leave soon. But drawn by the power of an idea-milk producers cooperating to build a better life- he stayed. Today, after a lifetime of service that touched millions of lives, Kurien passed away in the small town he never left.

When Kurien arrived in Anand, there was a fledgling dairy cooperative born of the Independence movement. The cooperative’s chairman, Tribhuvandasbhai Patel’s skill in motivating people combined with Dr Kurien’s entrepreneurial qualities, helped transform the business into a model for dairying.

In 1964, then PM Lal Bahadur Shastri visited Anand and created the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to replicate the spirit of Anand throughout India and asked Kurien to be its first chairman . Kurien accepted on the condition that the headquarters remained in Anand.

Establishing some 1,50,000 cooperatives with about 15 million members, and leading India to become the world’s largest milk producer was no mean feat. He strode like a Titan across bureaucratic barriers at every stage of NDDB’s history. The ultimate tribute to Kurien would be to protect what he stood for. May his vision continue to guide us.

(Dr Amrita Patel is the chairperson of NDDB)

Courtsey-ET

Verghese Kurien, was the architect of white revolution that changed India from a milk-deficient country to the world’s biggest milk producer. He laid the foundation of the nation’s co-operative dairy industry.

Recognized as the ‘Milkman of India’, who created the billion dollar brand Amul passed away on Sunday morning at the age of 90.

The Indian government had conferred on him the Padma Vibhushan while he was also the recipient of World Food Price,Ramon Magsaysay award for Community Leadership, Carnegie Wateler World Peace Prize and International Person of the Year award from US.

Born in Kozhikode, Kerala on November 26, 1921, Kurien had graduated in science from Loyola College in Chennai (1940) and obtained his degree in engineering from the Guindy College of Engineering in Chennai.

After a stint at TISCO, Jamshedpur, Kurien got the Government of India’s (GoI) scholarship to study dairy engineering.

Following specialized training at Imperial Institute of Animal Husbandry and Dairying in Bangalore, Kurien went to the United States where he completed his masters’ degree in mechanical engineering, with dairy engineering as a minor subject, from the Michigan State University in 1948.

On his return Dr Kurien was assigned to join Government Creamery located at Anand in Gujarat to serve his bond period. By the end of 1949, Kurien got release orders from his job at the creamery.

Kurien joined Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Limited in 1949, on the request of Tribhuvandas Patel, then dairy chairman. The dairy was formed at the initiative of Sardar Vallabhabhai Patel.

And thus began his journey which threw him to global lime light. Kurien was visionary no doubt as no one before him had understood the power of networking farmers into a unit and producing milk collectively.

Cooperative model came handy and he exploited it the hilt to go into history as one of the brightest sons of India.

It gladdens us to see Indian Cooperative emerging as platform for clash of ideas. Indian Cooperative piece “Constitution Amendment: NCUI wakes up” has attracted thought-provoking reactions from two persons- Shri I C Naik and Shri Meghavath. We present below their dialogue for readers benefit since the issue pertains to adoption of Constitutional amendment by the states

Ishwer Naik :

It is unfortunate that half of the time provided for the States to incorporate amended Constitutional provisions has elapsed without visible progress. There is a definite area of confusion in case of Maharashtra Housing Societies as the tenure of the Board for older societies (registered prior to the year 2000) it is three years and for rest 5 years. The reason is the tenure is fixed under the Bye Laws and the Act and Rules are silent. The State Government has to include provision of the Board’s tenure in the Act itself as soon as possible,

Meghavath :

Consequent to the Constitutional amendment in my opinion, the cooperative federations and unions will not be coming under the ambit of Cooperative legislation. These institutions cannot have member economic participation which is one of the Constitutional features of a cooperative society. Initially, the NCUI itself should be prepared to get registered under general societies/associations registration act.

Ishwer Naik

The wide spread allegations of interference of the “State” can be suitably addressed by empowering Cooperative Bodies like District Cooperative Federations, State level Federations, Central Federations with a liberty to become its members as the Primary Society may decide.

If any Society does not become member Registrar plays the role which such federations would have played. It could be a good idea to keep State interference to a minimum by such federations taking up Arbitrator’s Role within Cooperative Principles. So a fresh look should be given under each State Law to deemphasize the importance of role of the State Registrar and his hierarchy in the management of Cooperatives Constitutional Spirit is also that. It is moving towards higher level of self- rule by Cooperative Sector.

Meghavath

In order to continue the federal cooperative bodies, the RCS office should be a State Level Cooperative Society as defined under 243ZH (h) and the RCS should play the role of Chief Executive of that society. The RCS Society may have branches at sub levels. The RCS society should have constitutional wings such as Election, Audit, Training and Offenses & Penalties apart from Incorporation, Regulation & Winding-up. Except RCS the entire establishment should be appointed by the RCS society.

Ishwer Naik :

State Level Apex Society for every Sector (say Housing, Bank,Agriculture,Credit etc) should take over substantial role which is currently played by Registrar (including the whole Hirearchy up to district and ward level) National Federation of each Sector must play Role at National and International level reducing the Role of Union Ministry ( or expanding ).

Meghavath :

Reiterating my earlier comment, only those federal societies which have the Constitutional features like Voluntary formation, Democratic member control, Member economic participation, Autonomous functioning and Professional management can be continued under the cooperative legislation and those federal societies which are lacking above features can be continued under the non- cooperative legislation.

Any contravention for political or bureaucratic benefits shall not sustain in the court of law. Further, a separate election body is necessary as nomination of members to the vacant position in the board of a cooperative society is allowed only when the remaining period of such board is less than two and half years. It should be construed that such vacant position in case of remaining period of the board is more than two and half years, the interim election is imminent.

His mother took a small loan which grew into a fantastic figure with the local moneylender. This story relates to a remote village of Tamil Nadu. Hidden from the notice of both his mother and the money lender, a young boy saw first-hand a system which sucks blood from the poor.

This year’s Magsaysay award winner Kulandie Francis was born there. He is the son of the old lady who has turned ninety now. Francis acquired high academic degrees, went to Bangladesh to study working of Grameen Bank and earned name for him but never lost sight of what he had to do in life. He returned home. To change the lives of his mother and women in similar boats.

Today he has been awarded Magsaysay award but he hardly cares as he is motivated from within and needs no accolades to go on. He is a true stuff!

Kulandei Francis’s Integrated Village Development Project in Krishnagiri has done wonders for past decades. It has changed the lives of many in Tamil Nadu villages. He has pursued the economic empowerment of thousands of women and their families in rural India.

Francis helped establish self-help groups for women that supported poverty-stricken women engage in group activities and start micro enterprises, create savings accounts, and secure reliable loans.

At present there are over 8,000 self-help groups across the three districts of Krishnagiri, Dharmpuri and Vellore, supported by IVDP.

Cooperative movement is crying  for stuff like Kulandie Francis. Sad that no cooperative leader is ever in race of Magsaysay award, tall talks notwithstanding!

Exposure to cooperatives and introduction of new technology has catapulted an obscure Paliganj tucked away in Bihar to limelight.

The experiment had started in 2000 under ” mission mode program of technology mission 2020′ inspired by India’s former President APJ Abdul Kalam.

Paliganj farmers were sent on trips to Amalsad, Chikku fruit Cooperative and Warana Pura in Maharashtra so that they could understand the merits of the cooperative system.

Gautam Goswami who directed the whole experiment in Paliganj exuded happiness and enthusiasm while recently talking to the media about it. According to him, Paliganj earlier produced grains a mere two tonnes per hectare but thanks to the technology mission the farm productivity in the area has   surged to about 5 tonnes per hectare.

The Paliganj experiment is being supervised by technology information forecasting and assessment council of the Ministry of Science and Technology, government of India.  The place is within commuting distance of Patna.

Sources say   the new idea of farming being tried here has meant   more information and   exposure for farmers.  There is optimism that the Paliganj experiment would influence the future of farming in the whole of Bihar, they add.

Jacob Mannanal is a humanist and is at the helm of Mutholi Service Cooperative Bank which announced opening up of an old age home recently. Working for the cooperative sector for the past 48 years he is true cooperator carrying the cooperative movement on his shoulders.

The bank had been in service since 1957 in Kerala as its President Jacob Mannanal is said to be a humanist.Talking to Indian Cooperative he said that the new venture would come into operation next month in Kottayam districts.

He, however, refused to talk further saying that the bank allows only written communications.

The Mutholi Service Cooperative Bank has come forward to meet the challenge being posed by the growing geriatric load on the country’s population. The bank is building modern huts and cottages for the elderly people. The bank has been working on the project for the last ten years.

The living quarters for the old people are being constructed on a 4 acre plot. The project is called “sahakarana  vishramabhavanam”.

At the time  when  India is experiencing economic transformation  and  the young people in large number  are mobilising  leaving their homes for the faraway foreign lands , there exists  a  great need  for  putting in place facilities that  care of the  old at home.