Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has lauded the state’s cooperative banking network for expanding loan disbursement to over Rs. 23,000 crore in just eight years—a move he described as pivotal to empowering small and marginal farmers and advancing a self-reliant rural economy. Chairing a high-level review of the Cooperation Department, the Chief Minister directed swift rollout of the Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana and underscored the need for modernized infrastructure, streamlined governance, and enhanced digital integration across cooperative institutions. Strategic goals include broader participation from NABARD, infrastructure upgrades, increased credit access, and reforms to strengthen agricultural value chains.
Cooperative Lending Sees Exponential Growth
Uttar Pradesh’s cooperative banking sector has witnessed a substantial transformation under the current administration, with cumulative loan disbursals reaching Rs. 23,061 crore by 2025—up from Rs. 9,190 crore in 2017. The Chief Minister, calling it a “remarkable achievement,” highlighted the role of cooperatives in realizing rural self-sufficiency through improved financial inclusion and targeted credit flow to farmers. The Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Bank Limited alone recorded a net profit of Rs. 100.24 crore during this period, a testament to improved financial management and operational resilience.
Focus on Farmer Empowerment Through Krishak Samriddhi Yojana
A key highlight of the review meeting was the proposed rollout of the Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, a state-led initiative focused on boosting the income and economic security of small and marginal farmers. Chief Minister Adityanath emphasized a time-bound and efficient implementation strategy, urging strong collaboration with NABARD and cooperative banks. He called for a comprehensive project proposal to be submitted promptly, underscoring the importance of modernizing cooperative bank branches to ensure affordable, seamless access to credit.
Growth in Agri-Finance and Procurement
Between 2017 and 2025, the state disbursed Rs. 11,516 crore in crop loans and Rs. 393 crore in long-term loans through cooperative channels. Fertilizer distribution during this period totaled 34.45 lakh metric tonnes, while the state procured 25.53 lakh metric tonnes of paddy and 1.94 lakh metric tonnes of pulses and oilseeds. This scale of distribution reflects the state’s concerted effort to integrate credit access with input delivery and market linkages—pillars of a robust agricultural economy.
Warehousing Infrastructure Sees Strategic Expansion
To support the increased volume of agricultural production and procurement, Uttar Pradesh has made notable investments in storage infrastructure. Under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, 375 warehouses with a cumulative capacity of 37,500 metric tonnes have been constructed. An additional 1,060 warehouses totaling 1,17,350 metric tonnes were built under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana.
For FY2025–26, the state plans to construct 100 new warehouses, addressing critical post-harvest challenges and reducing dependency on third-party storage. The Chief Minister also instructed the formulation of a policy to incentivize private sector involvement in warehouse expansion, aligning with the broader goal of boosting rural infrastructure through public-private partnerships.
Reforms, Recruitment, and Digital Modernization
In a bid to enhance operational efficiency, the Chief Minister called for expedited recruitment across banking and non-banking cooperative positions via the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS). This move aims to address staffing shortages and improve service quality at the grassroots level. Cybersecurity and digital integration were also key discussion points. The UP Cooperative Bank Limited and 50 District Cooperative Banks are being integrated into NABARD’s Core Banking Solution (CBS) cloud platform—a major step toward digitizing rural banking and enhancing cyber resilience.
A Vision for Self-Reliant Cooperatives
Adityanath reiterated his vision of building self-sufficient cooperative institutions that offer farmers not only access to credit but also technological tools and reliable markets. He stressed the importance of ensuring transparency, timely payments to stakeholders such as rice millers, and reforms to organizations like the Pradeshik Cooperative Federation (PCF). This renewed push for rural banking reform represents a significant policy focus as the state continues to strengthen its agri-finance ecosystem, with the ultimate goal of transforming agriculture from a livelihood activity into a profitable enterprise.
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