PM pays tributes to mentor Lakshman Inamdar, moots new roadmap for farmers

New Delhi, Sept 21: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid rich tributes to his mentor and former RSS leader Lakshman Madhavrao Inamdar and recalled his behind-the-scene-and-silence work in cooperative movement. The Prime Minister also suggested that farmers and cooperative bodies in farm sector should evolve new roadmap for 'procurement and sale' methodologies and that new cooperative movements in the hitherto unexplored sectors should be tried especially involving women. “The procurement and sale methodologies adopted by farmers may be reversed. Now, a farmer buys in retail and sells in wholesale (quantity)....Can this be reversed?” the Prime Minister wondered and maintained that true success of the cooperative movement ought to be attributed to the fact that here the farmers evolved unique buying or procurement process. Paying rich tributes to his mentor Inamdar, popularly known as Vakil Saheb and who is credited with inducting the Prime Minister into the RSS, Mr Modi said hitherto unexplored areas like Neem leaves collection and coating in Urea, bee-keeping and sea weed farming should be taken up. "Vakil Saheb pushed for real cooperative spirit," he said. According to those who have followed Gujarat politics and Mr Modi's style of functioning and his oratory skills say Mr Modi has learned a lot from his mentor. A prominent Gujarat watcher once said, Mr Modi picked up the ability to use "a commoner's and everyday examples" to captivate his audience largely from his Guru-Vakil Saheb. Inamdar was deputed by the RSS to function as RSS pranth pracharak in 1943 and reportedly the oratory skills of Vakil Saheb had drawn Mr Modi to join the Sangh. The success in cooperative movement cannot come merely by joining an organising or adding a new. In this context he said, those volunteering to work in cooperative system must have the true 'spirit' of selfless service. He reiterated Inamdar’s mantra of 'Bina Sanskar, Nahin Sahkar' and said the cooperative movement largely depends on the spirit of sacrifice. "The cooperative movement actually depends on the spirit of service.....This cannot come with mere regulations. Vakil Saheb used to say that spirit will come only with tradition and culture. This is important," the Prime Minister said. He said introduction of a new buy-sale methodology for farmers and those in cooperative movement can also do away with the 'middlemen'. He said new areas of cooperative movements should be identified like the sea-weed farming. "This area can evolve into a profit making venture especially in pharmaceutical sector." The Prime Minister released two books: one on Inamdar, and one titled “Nine Gems of Indian Cooperative Movement.” He also gave away awards for cooperative excellence, on the occasion. Without naming anyone, he made a veiled attack on those who seek to steal limelight and media publicity for themselves in the name of 'cooperative movement'. Real success in cooperative movement can come only when one pushes and projects the united concern of people and their 'united works'. Lauding the silence and selfless manner his mentor functioned, Mr Modi said, "As some one who was close to him, I did not know many good qualities of him. Many people will today say they have never heard about him....In effect, that many people have not heard about him makes Vakil Saheb's works much bigger". UNI