Dipak Kurmi
A quiet yet radical revolution is germinating in the heartlands of India — a revolution not marked by street protests or summits in glass towers, but by the sacred plough, the humble cow, and the resilient spirit of the Indian farmer. With the Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah’s announcement to institutionalise three new Multistate Cooperative Societies focused on cow dung management, carbon credit valuation, and compressed biogas (CBG) production, India has launched a transformative model of grassroots-led climate governance. This bold vision does not merely echo global climate ambitions — it redefines them in the idiom of Bharat, making villages the frontlines of a new ecological awakening.
Gone are the days when Indian villages were seen solely as agrarian outposts. Imagine a future where every panchayat becomes a climate control centre, every PACS (Primary Agricultural Cooperative Society) a hub of bio-energy, and every farmer not only a cultivator of crops but also a steward of the Earth’s future. This green energy revolution is civilisational in its scope. Rooted in the ethos of Sahkarita (cooperation), it is ushering in a new democratic environmentalism that is indigenous in philosophy and global in impact.
For decades, climate policy was dictated by technocrats in distant capitals. But India is flipping the script. The cooperative economic framework being envisioned brings the climate agenda down to the grassroots. From cow sheds to carbon markets, the entire value chain of sustainable rural development is being repurposed and institutionalised. Every PACS, once a unit for fertiliser distribution or credit, is now being reimagined as a micro energy enterprise — processing cow dung into compressed biogas, converting agricultural residues into energy feedstock, and creating tradable carbon credits on international exchanges.
This move is not simply ecological; it is deeply economical and profoundly equitable. It elevates the farmer from being a passive subject of state subsidies to an active participant in global carbon markets. In India’s tribal, rain-fed, and border regions — often economically marginalised and environmentally fragile — this cooperative model offers not just sustainability but sovereignty. Generating income from cow dung or carbon credits transforms what was once rural waste into a weapon of economic emancipation. It offers the first real opportunity to decentralise not just power generation but climate finance itself.
One of the most neglected but potent aspects of rural distress — dead cattle economics — is being formalised. The unorganised disposal of dead livestock is not just an environmental hazard, it is a social fault line. With a dedicated multistate cooperative on integrated livestock resource management, India can convert this liability into an opportunity. Carcass processing units can generate organic leather, biofertilisers, and crucial feedstock for biogas plants, while providing dignified employment to thousands. Fodder banks and water recharge systems integrated through cooperative networks will ensure that livestock health, agricultural productivity, and ecological sustainability are interlinked in one seamless rural resource cycle.
This is nothing short of a rural renaissance — a revival of circular living rooted in ancient Vedic wisdom and powered by modern science. Cow dung, long revered in Indian tradition for its purifying and fertilising qualities, now finds itself at the heart of a global climate strategy. This isn’t just symbolism. With methane being a key contributor to global warming, India’s ability to capture it at the grassroots and convert it into clean energy gives it a powerful tool for emissions reduction. Compressed Biogas (CBG), with its low carbon footprint and high calorific value, is emerging as a viable alternative to LPG and diesel in rural India. Every block that produces and uses CBG cuts emissions, reduces fossil fuel imports, and enhances rural incomes.
The design of this cooperative architecture is crucial. From PACS at the village level to district unions and apex national bodies, the entire structure is being tailored for climate responsiveness. It ensures that even the most remote hamlet in Arunachal Pradesh or the border settlements of Ladakh are not left out of the clean energy loop. Traditional economic activities in these regions have long been constrained by harsh geographies. But biogas plants, fodder cycles, and carbon credit monetisation align perfectly with local ecologies, indigenous cultures, and India’s strategic needs. A prosperous border village, after all, is not just a secure economy — it is a national security asset.
To take this vision global, India has the opportunity to leverage the World Cooperation Economic Framework. This allows climate financing, ESG fund access, and carbon credit linkages to flow seamlessly from the global North to the local South. It enables the smallest cooperative society in a tribal hamlet to trade on international carbon exchanges. Blockchain can ensure traceability, carbon accounting can provide credibility, and institutional finance can offer scalability. India is not just creating a circular economy — it is forging a circular civilisation.
And yet, this mission is more than a technocratic feat. It is a spiritual renewal. This new climate governance is infused with the soul of India — a civilisation that worships rivers as mothers, trees as ancestors, and cows as symbols of abundance. It reflects a dharmic approach to the Earth — not as a resource to be exploited but as a relationship to be nurtured. When every farmer processes dung not just for profit but as an offering to ecological balance, it is nothing short of a yajna — a collective act of sacrifice and service.
India’s climate movement, therefore, is not born of compulsion, but of conviction — a conviction that the path to sustainability must be walked with consciousness, not coercion. This is why this revolution does not begin in skyscrapers but in gaushalas; not in IPOs but in PACS. It is a movement that rejects the victim narrative of developing nations pleading for climate reparations. Instead, it embraces a victor’s posture — offering solutions born from a confluence of science, tradition, and cooperative governance.
This cooperative-led climate renaissance is also a profound assertion of India’s soft power. In a world looking for low-cost, high-impact climate solutions, India’s model — deeply local yet infinitely scalable — can serve as a template for the Global South. It restores dignity to rural labour, monetises sacred traditions, and converts waste into wealth. It is climate action with a conscience.
And so, as India stands on the brink of becoming a $5 trillion economy, it is also redefining the metrics of progress. GDP is no longer the sole yardstick. Gross Dharmic Potential — a blend of sustainability, spirituality, and self-reliance — is the new mantra. From Sahkarita se Samriddhi (Prosperity through Cooperation) to Sahkarita se Sanrakshan (Protection through Cooperation), we are witnessing a reawakening of India’s ancient spirit through modern institutions.
Let the world take note: when Bharat’s villages rise, the Earth heals. Let us remember the timeless Vedic prayer — Sarve bhavantu sukhinah, sarve santu niramayaah (May all be happy, may all be healthy) — because this is not just environmental governance. It is economic justice, national strength, and spiritual resurgence — all rolled into one. This is Bharat’s climate yajna. And the world is watching.
(The writer can be reached at dipakkurmiglpltd@gmail.com)
