Displaying his resolve to reorganize the cooperative movement in Uttar Pradesh following the change of the guard in the state, Sahakar Bharati Chief Jyotindra Mehta dashed to Lucknow last week to meet the new Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Mehta made no bones about his dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs in the cooperative sector in Uttar Pradesh. A body blow, he feels , has been dealt to the sector by what he called a band of ” Dabbangs” during the previous dispensation. The situation needs an urgent repair, Mehta says.
It is against this background that a delegation of Sahakar Bharati led by him meeting the new Chief Minister and flat out handing him a laundry list of things that would have to be done to revive the cooperative movement in the state assumes significance. “We advocated for a comprehensive state cooperative policy”, Mehta stated.
Talking to Indian Cooperative Mehta said Chief Minister is well aware of the issues concerning cooperatives in the state and hinted at the need for a decisive initiative in this sector.
We did not take any names but underlined the fact that the movement had become a fiefdom of a few influential persons in the past”, Mehta said. Painting a sombre picture of the cooperative sector, Mehta said in former days cooperative elections were manipulated and powerful people decided who would be allowed to file nominations.
Besides, the nomination fees were too astronomical for ordinary cooperators to pay, all this has to change, Mehta
Readers would soon have a chance to see the efficacy of Yogi’s administrative skills as cooperative elections in the state are round the corner.
Mehta also raised the issue of parallel act or what is known as Independent Act before the CM. First begun in Andhra Pradesh, the act enjoins minimum interference by the bureaucracy or the govt in the working of cooperatives. It envisions a member-driven cooperative movement, Mehta underlined.
Sahakar Bharati list submitted to the Chief Minister contained 18-20 points. A delegation comprising of about 20 people had gone to meet Yogi. Earlier, Lucknow-based Sahakar Bharati karyakarta and an officer of IT Cell of BJP Prashant Singh Rathore had met the CM.
What was liked by Mehta in Yogi was his dislike for accepting flower bouquet as well as his indifference towards posing for group photographs. “Yogi inspires hope”, Mehta concluded.