Amit Shah Inaugurates Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank’s Sahakar Bhavan

Taking forward Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Sahkar Se Samriddhi’ and under the leadership of Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah, another important step was taken today towards making the country’s cooperative banking system modern, transparent and farmer-centric. Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah virtually inaugurated ‘Sahakar Bhavan’, the newly constructed headquarters of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank in Jamnagar, Gujarat. Equipped with state-of-the-art technology, the new headquarters will cater to the financial and institutional requirements of farmers, service cooperative societies and dairy cooperative institutions in the districts of Jamnagar and Devbhumi Dwarka.

Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel, Cooperation Minister of Gujarat Shri Jitubhai Vaghani, Gujarat Cabinet Ministers Shri Arjunbhai Modhwadia, Shri Raghavjibhai Patel, Shri Mulubhai Bera, Member of Parliament from Jamnagar Smt. Poonamben Maadam, Minister of State and MLA from Jamnagar North Smt. Rivaba Jadeja, Chairman of Gujarat State Cooperative Bank Shri Ajaybhai Patel, and Chairman of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank Shri Jitubhai Lal attended the programme or joined it virtually. Directors of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank, senior officials of the district administration, chairpersons of Agricultural Produce Market Committees and district cooperative unions, office-bearers of the Jamnagar Milk Union, chairpersons of cooperative urban banks, representatives of service cooperative societies, several public representatives and a large number of farmers also participated in the programme.

Addressing the programme, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah congratulated the Chairman of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank, all its directors, office-bearers of service cooperative societies and farmers on the construction of the new headquarters. He said that modernisation is essential for strengthening the cooperative system and that this process begins with modernising the headquarters and functioning of cooperative institutions.

Shri Amit Shah said the new headquarters of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank has been constructed in conformity with all the standards prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India and NABARD and is equipped with state-of-the-art technology. He said the headquarters will help provide better, safer and more modern banking services to farmers, service cooperative societies and other cooperative institutions in Jamnagar district.

The Union Minister of Cooperation said that Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank, which began in 1969 with a modest capital of only ₹2.5 lakh, today has a business of more than ₹215 crore. He said that as service cooperative societies and dairy cooperative societies expand their areas of operation, the bank will play an increasingly important role as a major institution meeting the financial requirements of the cooperative sector across the district.

Shri Amit Shah said the modern headquarters, constructed at a cost of approximately ₹25 crore, has been built on 25,000 square feet of land and offers nearly 47,000 square feet of functional space. The building has been designed keeping in view the bank’s projected requirements for the next 15 years. The building has several facilities, including a training centre, farmers’ hostel, modern conference rooms, meeting halls, secure locker facilities and dining arrangements. He said the building will function as an energy centre for farmers in both Jamnagar and Devbhumi Dwarka districts. The installation of a 200-kilowatt solar power plant in the building is an important step towards developing it as a green building.

The Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said the bank has total deposits of approximately ₹135 crore. It has disbursed loans amounting to ₹780 crore, earned a profit of ₹24 crore and has zero gross NPA. He described these achievements as evidence of the bank’s efficient management and commitment to cooperative values.

Shri Amit Shah said that the bank, which operates through 40 branches, will use the new headquarters to expand its reach to villages across Jamnagar district. The bank is associated with 431 service cooperative societies, six dairy unions and 652 milk producers’ societies and provides services to more than 1.5 lakh cooperative members.

The Union Minister of Cooperation said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Government of India established a separate Ministry of Cooperation and infused new energy and momentum into the country’s cooperative movement. He said that initiatives such as establishing more than two lakh new Primary Agricultural Credit Societies and dairy cooperative societies, adding more than 20 new business activities to PACS, taking the audit system of cooperative institutions online and connecting different cooperative institutions with one another will play an important role in ensuring the prosperity of farmers and strengthening the rural economy in the coming years.

Shri Amit Shah said that during a future visit to Jamnagar, he would visit the new headquarters of Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank. He also said that during his visit, he would hold a meeting with representatives of the district’s service cooperative societies and dairy cooperative societies and discuss in detail issues relating to the expansion of the cooperative sector and the prosperity of farmers. He expressed confidence that Jamnagar District Cooperative Bank would grow stronger in the coming years and provide better services to citizens, farmers and cooperative institutions across villages.