The registration process for Multi-State Cooperative Societies has been streamlined and made time-bound following amendments to the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act in 2023, with the Centre introducing an online application system and reducing the approval timeline, informed Amit Shah, Union Minister.
In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Amit Shah said that applications for registration of Multi-State Cooperative Societies are now processed through the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies portal. Under the revised framework, the time period for disposal of registration applications by the Central Registrar has been reduced from four months to three months.
He added that the registration timeline may be extended by a maximum of two additional months at the request of the applicant to allow rectification of errors or deficiencies in the application. This provision, the government said, ensures that genuine applicants are not rejected on procedural grounds while maintaining a clear outer time limit for approvals.
Before the 2023 amendment, the registration process for multi-state cooperatives was largely manual and often marked by delays. Applications were submitted in physical form and moved through multiple layers of scrutiny, leading to repeated queries and prolonged correspondence. In practice, registrations frequently took far longer than the prescribed four-month period, with several applicants reporting waiting periods ranging from six months to over a year.
Stakeholders in the cooperative sector have long pointed out that the absence of a digital tracking mechanism made it difficult to monitor the status of applications, while frequent clarifications and document resubmissions added to the uncertainty. For societies seeking to operate across state boundaries, these delays often disrupted business plans and discouraged expansion.
The shift to an online registration system is part of the Centre’s broader effort to reform and strengthen the cooperative sector after the creation of the Ministry of Cooperation.
Officials say the CRCS portal enables transparent submission, real-time scrutiny and faster communication, reducing dependence on manual processes and discretionary delays.
The government believes that faster and predictable registration timelines will encourage the formation of new multi-state cooperatives in sectors such as agriculture, dairy, fisheries, credit and marketing, enabling them to scale operations, improve market access and play a larger role in strengthening the rural economy, said an official on condition of anonymity.
