Mukul Sarkar
In West Bengal a good number of urban cooperative banks have lost their credibility. Some have been closed and some are being run with the financial support received from the State Government. Several UCBs in the other States are doing no better.
Whether Central Government/RBI is thinking ways to revive these banks? There is Vaidyanathan Committee’s recommendations, V.S. Das Committee’s recommendations and also some other recommendations.
Depositors are in trouble regarding their money in such banks. Will you please let me know the actual stance of the RBI or Govt in the matter?
I C Naik
Who does not know why most cooperative societies doing banking are on the brink of reaching a dooms day, across the whole of our nation?
My response to Mukul Sarkar’s well-founded frustration is as under;
1.Constitutional reforms
a.Forming Cooperative Society is now a fundamental right like other rights of freedom of expression and speech, movement, no discrimination among Indians on religion, cast creed etc. Even the almighty Constitution Amendment cannot abrogate these rights. Obviously this new right presupposes cooperatives ushering in an era where a new directive principle of State Policy can be seen resuming its role sooner than expected.
b.The Parliament has recently enshrined a new directive principle of State Policy viz Art 43B in the Constitution of India, whereby it is desired that the State shall endeavour to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning, democratic control and professional management of co-operative Societies.
c.Additionally drawing lessons from n number of studies in Cooperatives undertaken by various Committees set up by the Government, a set of a fundamental rules for adherence in the management of cooperative societies across the whole nation have also been incorporated in the Constitution, A separate Part IXB Cooperative Societies ( consisting of AA 243H to 243T ) very much on the lines of insertion of Parts IX and IXA sometime in 1993 for Panchayti Raj and Municipalities providing for Statutory Rules applicable across India has been inserted in the Constitution.
2. These measures are an attempt to boost up the movement cooperatives through Constitutional reforms the essence of which is freedom in management of cooperative societies to members with their increased accountability for their management.
3. The RBI has reportedly directed that managements of UCBs should keep Politicians away from their managements so that professional competence can be built and political equations are not brought in to play to strangulate cooperative banks as was happening hitherto as revealed in several studies.
4. Enlightened Governments like that of State of Punjab wasting no time in starting to implement the aforesaid RBI directive, is like a silver lining emerging well ahead of the advent of darkness.
5. What else the Cooperators want from the Government? On one hand we cry wolf for State intervention in cooperative management and on the other hand look for “a stance of Government and RBI” to throw tax payers’ good money in to a well of bad money, probably?
6. Has the time not yet come that we ask ourselves, for a change, what we can we do in UCBs without any State intervention or help. Every external help drags oneself towards ultimate slavery one day. Was not British Raj in India an example thereof?