Ministry of Cooperation Expands Tribhuvan Sahkari University Executive Council to Strengthen Governance and Academic Representation

The changes have been notified under Statute 8 of the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Statutes, 2025, read with sub-section (2) of Section 22 of the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Act, 2025. The notification further amends the Ministry of Cooperation's earlier order issued on July 16, 2025, which established the composition of the university's Executive Council.

According to the notification issued last week, the Central Government has inserted two new categories of members into the Executive Council after serial number 13 of the existing composition. As part of the amendment, the Director and ex officio Dean of the Institute of Rural Management Anand School has been included as an ex officio member of the Executive Council.

Officials in the Ministry of Cooperation stated that the inclusion of the two new categories of members is expected to bring greater institutional expertise from one of the university's key academic schools into the Executive Council's decision-making process, thereby strengthening governance and enhancing academic participation at the highest level.

The notification also introduces a provision under which the Deans of specified schools will serve as ex officio members of the Executive Council on a rotational basis for a tenure of three years. Under the newly introduced arrangement, the first two Deans nominated to the Executive Council are Professor Saswata Narayan Biswas, Dean of the School of Co-operative Management, and Professor Pramod Kumar Singh, Dean of the School of Governance, Development and Policy.

According to the notification, the rotational system has been designed to ensure that different academic schools receive representation in the Executive Council over time while maintaining continuity in the university's governance structure. The arrangement is expected to broaden academic participation in policy formulation and administrative decision-making.

The Executive Council serves as the principal executive authority of Tribhuvan Sahkari University and is responsible for making key administrative, academic, and financial decisions. The inclusion of additional academic leaders is expected to strengthen institutional planning, governance, and policy formulation as the university expands its educational, research, and training activities.

The latest amendment has been issued in exercise of the powers conferred under the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Act, 2025, and the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Statutes. It revises the principal notification published in the Gazette of India on July 16, 2025, which constituted the Executive Council following the enactment of the university legislation.

The Ministry of Cooperation noted that the original notification had already undergone one revision earlier this year and was last amended through a notification dated April 22, 2026. The latest amendment further updates the composition of the Executive Council by incorporating additional ex officio academic members, reflecting the Central Government's continued efforts to strengthen the governance structure of the country's first national cooperative university.

Tribhuvan Sahkari University, located in Anand, Gujarat, is India's first national cooperative university. The Institute of Rural Management Anand was established as Tribhuvan Sahkari University through the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Act, 2025 (Act No. 11 of 2025), granting it the status of an Institution of National Importance. The university has been created to impart technical and management education, training, and research for the cooperative sector across India.

The university embodies the vision of "Prosperity Through Cooperation" by promoting world-class education, research, innovation, and capacity-building for the cooperative sector. Its objective is to emerge as a global centre of excellence in cooperative education, research, and innovation while contributing to sustainable development and inclusive growth through the cooperative-based economic model. The mission of the university is to professionalise India's cooperative sector through skill development, standardisation, innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership rooted in cooperative values and ethics, reinforcing its long-term role in strengthening the country's cooperative movement.