New National Policy on Cooperatives

The policy aims to enhance cooperation among cooperative financial institutions while maintaining the existing three-tier credit structure.

Apex Cooperative Bank Proposal

• An apex cooperative bank is proposed to foster collaboration and support among cooperative banks.
• It will help in capacity building, providing professionalism, support, and business opportunities.

Regulatory Framework

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulates cooperative banking institutions.
• Non-banking cooperative societies, like thrift credit societies, are overseen by state registrars of cooperatives.

Three-Tier Credit Structure

• Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS): Operate at the panchayat or village levels.
• District Credit Cooperative Banks (DCCBs): Function at the district level.
• State Cooperative Banks: Function at the state level.

Task Force and Challenges

• A task force will examine challenges faced by cooperative credit institutions.
• It will recommend measures to address long-term credit issues and increase deposits of DCCBs.

Cooperative Societies in India

• India has over 800,000 cooperative societies, including around 200,000 credit cooperatives.
• Non-credit cooperatives operate in sectors like housing, dairy, labor, sugar, consumer goods, and more.

Membership 

• The cooperative sector comprises about 300 million members, with PACS having over 130 million members nationwide.