'Milkman' Dr Kurien quits GCMMF ahead of no-trust vote

Anand, Mar 20: 'Father of White Revolution' in India Dr Verghese Kurien today resigned as chairman of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), the largest dairy cooperative in the country, which he had been heading since its inception in 1973.

The octogenarian co-operative leader, fondly known as the ''milkman'' of India for his five-decade long contribution to the cooperative dairy industry in the country, announced his resignation as member and chairman of the board of the federation, being faced with a no-confidence move against him by the 12-member board.

Due to the growing dissension, last week, 10 of the 12 members of the board, who headed the Ahmedabad, Panchmahals, Mehsana, Banaskantha, Sabarkantha, Gandhinagar, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Anand, Valsad and Bharuch district dairy co-operatives affiliated to the federation, in a meeting in Anand had decided to bring a no-confidence motion against Dr Kurien on March 24.

Ironically, just about three months back, the founder chairman of the federation was ''unanimously'' re-elected as chairman of the board for another period of three years.

Insisting that he did not hold anything personal against the board members, Dr Kurien said, ''I wonder what considerations have prompted them to adopt such a course of action against me. I could only think that the decision of the board members for my removal is an orchestrated act involving people at a very high level.'' Peeved by the board members' sudden loss of confidence in him, Dr Kurien, who also heads the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA), said, ''Having served the cooperative dairy sector for over five decades with complete dedication and commitment, do I deserve this kind of treatment from the board members? I am anguished and pained by the move of the GCMMF board against me.'' Addressing a media conference at the IRMA auditorium, Dr Kurien pointed out that his decision to quit GCMMF was in deference to the recent order of the Gujarat High Court on the issue of co-option of members on the management committee of the cooperative bodies in Gujarat. ''I have taken the decision as a person firmly believing in rule of law and principles of co-operatives,'' he added.

Taking a dig at the board members' move, Dr Kurien said, ''The board has only become a pawn in the bigger game plan of some vested interests bent upon capturing the co-operative body, which has withstood many such attempts in the past. My concern is that the federation which has emerged as a symbol of cooperative success, should not succumb to such designs and in the process harm the interest of the farmer members.'' Replying to a query, he said he was told by one of the board members yesterday that it was federation's Managing Director V M Vyas, who was behind the no-confidence move against him. However, it was for the media to bring out the truth and expose them.

Asked who could be the next chairman of the largest dairy cooperative, Dr Kurien said,''They may find it difficult to elect a new chairman as everybody wants to be the chairman of the federation.'' Denying that he had any plan to move the court on the issue, he said the matter should be settled by the farmer members who should never be underestimated.

Regarding his position in IRMA, Dr Kurien said, the institution was completely separate from GCMMF, and he would continue to be its chairman and work to safeguard the interests of the farmers.

He also said he was happy that during his 34-year tenure, the federation had emerged as the biggest Rs 3,600 crore food business in the country. ''It takes a clear vision and life long dedication with determination to build great institutions like Amul, NDDB, GCMMF, NCDFI and IRMA,'' he said, adding that he did his best to fulfil the dreams of India's farmers.

He, however, regretted that some of the cooperative institutions set up in Gujarat were drifting away from their original mission of supporting the cause of farmers' cooperatives. ''This is a matter of great concern for those involved in the uplift of conditions of the farmers in the country.'' The cooperative leader also called upon the farmers of Amul in particular and farmers' institutions in general, to be fully aware of such threats and be vigilant to protect their institutions.

While making an appeal to the farmers to come forward and take control of the cooperatives promoted and nurtured by great leaders like Sardar Patel, Morarji Desai and Tribuvandas Patel, Dr Kurien expressed hope that no attempts would be made to destabilise and deform institutions like IRMA and National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India (NCDFI), also located in the milk city of Anand, which were meant to serve the farmers' interests in their own unique ways.
Rejecting the allegation that he was illegally occupying the chairmanship of the federation since its inception in 1973, Dr Kurien said bylaws which permitted him to be co-opted as a dairy management expert were approved by the then government, before GCMMF was registered in 1974. ''Now, after 34 years of building GCMMF (Amul) to a Rs 3,600 crore food business--the largest food business in India, to question my co-option raises more questions than it answers,'' he said.

UNI