The newly launched National Cooperative Policy proposes to preserve and promote the three-tier short-term cooperative credit structure, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs), and State Cooperative Banks (StCBs), to ensure the delivery of affordable credit while upholding the democratic character of cooperatives.
In addition, the policy emphasizes collaboration with States and Union Territories to promote the establishment of one PACS in every panchayat, one DCCB in every district, and one Urban Cooperative Bank (UCB) in every urban centre, in uncovered areas, to advance financial inclusion through cooperatives, subject to viability.
It also seeks to strengthen the role of PACS by designating them as implementing agencies for various government schemes at the grassroots level and incentivizing well-performing PACS to encourage efficiency and accountability.