Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan came down heavily on the Centre for trying to sabotage the co-operative movement through demonetization. The pangs are not yet over, said Vijayan on the occasion of inauguration of the 8th Sahakarana Congress on Saturday in Kanoor.
A communist to the core, the chief minister carped at globalization. Since the advent of globalization on the global scene the one sector which has suffered the most is the co-operative model of business, Vijyan said.
While co-operatives are local and serve the immediate community, globalization means you buy or sell from and to the world, he said.
Recounting the nightmares of credit cooperative sector in the wake of demonetization Vijayan said more than 558 credit cooperatives were running on losses while 30 were on the verge of closure. “It served a body blow to the credibility of these organization; it is on only on the trust that these bodies operate and demonetization robbed it of the same,” he underlined.
Lauding the role being played by the co-op sector the Chief Minister said there was more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore deposits in the sector prior to demonetization. It addressed to the needs of local people unlike State Bank of India which collects huge fund by penalizing people for not maintaining the minimum balance, Vijayan added.
Vijayan, however congratulated co-operatives for staying together and fighting it out collectively. In this context, he mentioned his govt idea of floating Kerala Cooperative Bank by merging DCCBs and said the problems of co-op banks would go away in time.
While the CM lauded MILMA for making the state nearly self-sufficient in milk he wanted other sectors especially fish and coir to modernize with times.
Cooperative ministers of both Kerala and Puducherry namely Kadakampally Surendran and M Kandaswamy Sellur K Raju were present. Even the Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala was present. Congress leader KC Josef had earlier alleged forced collection of donation in the name of Co-op Congress was however not there.
The three day function would conclude today on Monday with a public meeting and a cultural procession in which 1.25 lakh people are expected to take part. Seminars on various co-op issues are being organized in the Cooperative Congress.