Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said a Developed India will be realized only if the country has a strong rural economy, and unlike previous governments, his government takes a holistic view of rural activities to encourage their growth.

He was speaking at the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), known for its Amul brand, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Motera, Ahmedabad.

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The Prime Minister said governments earlier had a fragmented view of the rural economy. This neither allowed rural India to prosper nor gave farmers an opportunity to improve their economic lot, he said.

Mr Modi said his government is paying attention to small farmers and how to improve their lives. The government is focusing on animal husbandry, fisheries, giving their farmers Kisan Credit Cards. Bee-keeping is being encouraged and farmers are supplied seeds which can face climate change.

The Prime Minister said the Union Cabinet, late on Wednesday, decided to bring changes in the National Livestock Mission to encourage domestic breeds. Financial aid will be given to help make wastelands turn into grazing pastures. Premia for insurance of animals is being reduced to make animal rearing profitable.

The government has constituted a Rs 30,000 crore fund to modernize infrastructure related to animal husbandry, he said. Dairy cooperatives are being provided credit on lower rates and thousands of crores of Rupees are being spent on modernization of milk plants, he said.

Talking about Amul, the Prime Minister said many brands came after Independence, but there was nothing comparable to Amul. He said “Amul has become the symbol of the strength of the Pashupalaks of India.”

The Prime Minister said, “Amul means trust, development, public participation, empowerment of farmers and technological advancements through time.” He said Amul is the inspiration of Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Amul products are exported to more than 50 countries around the world, He said more than 18,000 milk cooperative committees and a network of 36,000 farmers are associated with it. More than 3.5 crore litres of milk is being processed per day, and the associated livestock breeders get online payments of Rs 200 crores every day.

The Prime Minister said Amul has shown how transformation can be achieved by taking decisions with farsight. The origin of Amul, he said, lay in the Kheda Milk Union under the guidance of Sardar Patel. With the expansion of cooperatives in Gujarat, the GCMMF came into being.

He said, “It is a great example of balance between cooperatives and government and such efforts have made us the largest milk-producing nation of the world, employing eight crore people.” In the last 10 years, he said, milk production has increased by almost 60 per cent and the per capita milk availability has increased by about 40 per cent. The Indian dairy sector, he said, is growing by six per cent per year as compared to the global average of two per cent.

The government is expanding the scope of the cooperative sector, he said. A separate Ministry for cooperatives has been formed. Two lakh villages will be encouraged to have cooperatives. Cooperatives will be formed in manufacturing also.

Ten thousand farmers producers organizations have been formed and they are being given huge financial aid, he said. A fund of Rs 1 lakh crore has been formed to build farming related infrastructure and its benefit is being taken by farmers’ cooperatives, he said.

Underscoring the centrality of women in the Rs 10 lakh crore dairy sector, Mr Modi said the turnover of the dairy sector, helmed by women up to 70 per cent, is more than the turnover of wheat, rice and sugarcane combined. “This Nari Shakti is the real backbone of the dairy sector. Today, when India is moving ahead with women-led development, the success of its dairy sector is a huge inspiration,” he said.

He said it was critical to improve the economic strength of women in the journey towards Viksit Bharat. Under Mudra Yojana, 70 per cent of Rs 30 lakh crore assistance has been availed of by women entrepreneurs.

The number of women in Self Help Groups has crossed 10 crore and they have received more than Rs 6 lakh crore worth of financial help. Most of the four crore PM Awas houses are in the name of the women of the house. The Prime Minister said the Namo Drone Didi Scheme will have 15,000 SHGs with drones and their members are being given training.