Lok Sabha Question No. 2423 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-08-06
Subject: Cooperative Sector in Rajasthan
Ministry: COOPERATION
Asked by: Shri Dushyant Singh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COOPERATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2423 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06/08/2024

## Cooperative Sector in Rajasthan

## 2423. SHRI DUSHYANT SINGH:

Will the Minister of COOPERATION ( सहकारिता मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

(a)  the specific initiatives by the Ministry of Cooperation implemented in particularly Jhalawar Baran, Rajasthan and across India to promote cooperative societies;

(b) the manner by which the Ministry supporting the development of cooperative banks and credit societies in Jhalawar-Baran, Rajasthan;

(c) whether there are any targeted programmes aimed at improving the livelihoods of farmers and rural communities through cooperatives in Jhalawar-Baran and Rajasthan, if so, the details thereof, if not, the reasons therefor;

(d) whether the Ministry has taken measures to strengthen the marketing and supply chain for cooperative products from Rajasthan, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and

(e)  the  number  of  cooperatives  registered  in  Rajasthan  in  recent  years,  along  with  any successful initiatives in the sector emerging from these initiatives?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF COOPERATION सहकारिता मंत्री (SHRI AMIT SHAH)

(a) to (e): The Ministry of Cooperation was established on 06 th July, 2021 with the objective of holistic development of Cooperative Sector. Since its inception, the Ministry is working on strengthening of Cooperative Societies and cooperative movement in country and to realise the vision of 'Sahakar se Samriddhi'. For the promotion of the cooperative societies in the country as  well  as  Rajasthan,  the  Ministry  of  Cooperation  has  taken  a  number  of  initiatives  in consultation  with  various  Ministries/Departments  of  the  Government  of  India,  State/UT Governments, National Cooperative Federations, Statutory and Non-Statutory bodies such as NABARD, NDDB, NCDC, NFDB etc.

The  steps  taken  for  the  improvement  in  the  livelihoods  of  farmers  and  rural communities through cooperatives are as under:

## A. Three new National Level Multi-State Cooperative Societies

1. New National  Multi-State  Cooperative  Seed  Society  for  certified  seeds :  Under  the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, a new Bhartiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) has been set  up  as  an  Umbrella  organization  for  cultivation,  production  and distribution  of  improved  seeds  under  a  Single  Brand  name.  Cooperative  Societies (Primary, District and State level) of States/Union Territories can become its members. This Society will increase availability of improved seeds to the farmers, boost productivity

of crops and enhance the income of the farmers. BBSSL so far has planted breeder seeds of Wheat,  Mustard,  and  Pulses  (Gram,  Pea)  on  366  Hectare  land  during  Rabi  season. Similarly, during Kharif season breeder seeds of Peddy, Moong, Soyabean, Groundnut, Jowar  and  Guar  have  been  planted  on  148.26  Hectare  land. As  on  date  11714  PACS/ Cooperative Societies have become member of BBSSL.

2. New  National  Multi-State  Cooperative  Organic  Society  for  organic  farming :  The National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) has been established under the MultiState Cooperative Societies Act, 2002 as an Umbrella organization which will work for production, distribution and marketing of certified and authentic organic products. Primary to National level cooperative societies including District, State, National level federations, Multi-State  Cooperative  Societies,  and  Farmer  Producer  Organizations  (FPOs)  can become its members. This will increase production of organic products and increase the profit of the farmers. As on date 3,775 PACS/ cooperative societies have become member of  NCOL.  So  far,  12  organic  products  have  been  launched  by  NCOL  under  'Bharat Organics' brand.
3. New National Multi-State Cooperative Export Society for promoting exports : Under the  Multi-State  Cooperative  Societies Act,  2002,  a  new  National  Cooperative  Exports Limited (NCEL) has been set up as an Umbrella organization to promote exports from the cooperative sector. Cooperative societies from Primary to National level including District, State,  National  level  federations  and  Multi-State  Cooperative  Societies  can  become  its members. Through this Society, the Export of farmers' products will be facilitated and the farmers will get better price for their products. As on date, about 7700 PACS/ cooperative societies have become member of NCEL. A total of 8,15,007 metric tonnes of commodities have been exported by NCEL. Out of which 8,01,790 metric tonnes of rice, 7,685 metric tonnes of onions, 4507 metric tonnes of sugar, 1025 metric tonnes of wheat have been exported.

## B. Online Portal for procurement of Maize and Pulses from farmers:

An online portal developed by National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India  Ltd.  (NAFED)  and  National  Cooperative  Consumers'  Federation  of  India  Limited (NCCF) has been launched for registration, procurement and payment for Maize and pulses from the farmers. This will facilitate the farmers to sell their produce minimum at MSP to NAFED and NCCF on their e-portal in advance and get the payment through DBT. Through this initiative prosperity of farmers, self-reliance of the country in the production of pulses and nutrition campaigns will be strengthened.

Further, the details of all the 54 initiatives taken by the Ministry for empowerment of cooperative societies, creation of employment at rural level, resolution of difficulties faced by cooperative banks, strengthening of marketing and supply chain etc and progress made so far is annexed as Annexure.

According to the National Cooperative Database, 7664 PACS, 52 Cooperative banks, (StCBs -1, DCCBs-29, UCBs -22) 598 Credit & Thrift Societies and 21816 Cooperative Societies  are  registered  in  Rajasthan.  Out  of  which,  396  PACS,  4  Cooperative  banks, (DCCBs-2,  UCBs  -2)  45  Credit  &  Thrift  Societies  and  655  Cooperative  Societies  are registered in Jhalawar-Baran, Rajasthan.

## Brief of 54 initiatives taken by Ministry of Cooperation

Ministry of Cooperation, since its inception on 6 th July, 2021, has undertaken several initiatives to realize the vision of 'Sahakar-se-Samriddhi' and to strengthen & deepen the cooperative movement from Primary to Apex level Cooperatives in the country. List of initiatives taken and progress made so far are as follows:

## A. Making Primary Cooperatives economically vibrant and transparent

1. Model  Bye-Laws  for  PACS  making  them  multipurpose,  multidimensional  and transparent entities :  Government,  in  consultation  with  all  the  stakeholders,  including States/  UTs,  National  Level  Federations,  State  Cooperative  Banks  (StCBs),  District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs), etc., has prepared and circulated Model Byelaws for PACS to all the States/  UTs,  which  enable  PACS  to  undertake  more  than  25  business activities,  improve  governance,  transparency  and  accountability  in  their  operations. Provisions have also been made to make the membership of PACS more inclusive and broad-based, giving adequate representation to women and Scheduled Castes/Schedules Tribes. So far, 32 States/ UTs have adopted Model Byelaws or their existing byelaws are in line with Model Byelaws.
2. Strengthening of PACS through Computerization :  In order to strengthen PACS, project for Computerization of functional PACS with a total financial outlay of ₹2,516 Crore has been approved by the Government of India, which entails bringing all functional PACS in the Country onto a common ERP based national software, linking them with NABARD through  StCBs  and  DCCBs. A  total  of  67,009  PACS  from  30  States/  UTs  have  been sanctioned  under  the  project. The  hardware  has  been  procured  by  28  States/UTs. Total 25,674 PACS have been onboarded on ERP Software and 15,207 PACS have gone live.
3. Establishing  New  Multipurpose  PACS/  Dairy/  Fishery  Cooperatives  in  uncovered Panchayats : The plan for establishing new multipurpose PACS or primary dairy/ fisheries cooperatives covering all the Panchayats/ villages in the next five years, with support of NABARD, NDDB, NFDB, NCDC and other National level Federations has been approved by the Government. As per National Cooperative Database, a total of 6,844 new PACS, Dairy and Fishery cooperative societies have been registered across States/ UTs.
4. World's Largest Decentralized Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative sector : Government has approved a plan to create warehouses, custom hiring centers, primary processing units and  other  agri  infrastructure  for  grain  storage  at  PACS  level,  through  convergence  of various GOI schemes, including AIF, AMI, SMAM, PMFME, etc. This will reduce wastage of  food  grains  and  transportation  costs,  enable  farmers  to  realize  better  prices  for  their produce  and  meet  various  agricultural  needs  at  the  PACS  level  itself.  Under  the  Pilot Project, godowns have been constructed in 11 PACS of 11 States and the Pilot is now being extended to 500 additional PACS.
5. PACS as Common Service Centers (CSCs) for better access to e-services : An MoU has been signed between Ministry of Cooperation, MeitY, NABARD and CSC e-Governance Services India Limited for providing more than 300 e-services such as banking, insurance, Aadhar enrolment/ updation, health services, PAN card and IRCTC/ Bus/ Air ticket, etc.

through PACS. So far, 37,169 PACS have started providing CSC services to rural citizens which will also result in increase in income of these PACS.

6. Formation of new Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) by PACS : Government has allowed 1,100 additional FPOs to be formed by PACS with the support of NCDC, in those blocks where FPOs have not yet been formed or the blocks are not covered by any other implementing agency. Apart from this, 992 FPOs have been formed in  the cooperative sector by NCDC. This will be helpful in providing farmers with necessary market linkages and get fair and remunerative prices for their produce.
7. PACS given priority for Retail Petrol/ Diesel outlets : Government has allowed PACS to be included in the Combined Category 2 (CC2) for allotment of retail petrol/ diesel outlets. As per information received from Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), more than 270 PACS from 25 States/UTs have applied online for retail petrol/ diesel outlets.
8. PACS given permission to convert bulk consumer petrol pumps into retail outlets : Based on the discussions with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, guidelines have been issued to convert the existing bulk consumer licensee PACS into retail outlets for increasing the profit of PACS and generate employment opportunities in rural areas. 109 PACS from 4 States having wholesale consumer pumps have given consent for conversion into Retail Outlets, out of which 43 PACS have received Letter of Intent (LOI) from the OMCs.
9. PACS eligible for LPG Distributorship for diversifying its activities : Government has now allowed PACS to apply for LPG Distributorships. This will give PACS an option to increase their economic activities and create new employment opportunities in rural areas. From four States/ Union Territories, a total of 31 PACS have submitted online applications.
10. PACS  as  PM  Bharatiya  Jan  Aushadhi  Kendra  for  improving  access  to  generic medicines  at  rural  level :  Government  is  promoting  PACS  to  operate  Pradhan  Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras which will provide additional income source to them and ease the access to generic medicines for rural citizens. So far, 4,341 PACS/ cooperative societies have applied online for PM Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras, out of which 2,594 PACS have been given initial approval by PMBI and 674 have received drug licences from State Drug Controllers which are ready to function as PM Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendras
11. PACS  as  Pradhan  Mantri  Kisan  Samriddhi  Kendras  (PMKSK): Government  is promoting PACS to operate PMKSK for ensuring easy accessibility of fertilizer & related services to farmers in the country. As per the information shared by States/ UTs, 38,141 PACS are functioning as PMKSK.
12. Convergence of PM-KUSUM at PACS level : Farmers associated with PACS can adopt solar agricultural water pumps and install photovoltaic modules in their farms.
13. PACS to carry out O&M of rural piped water supply schemes (PWS) : In order to utilize the deep reach of PACS in rural areas, on the initiative of the Ministry of Cooperation, Ministry of Jal Shakti has made PACS as eligible agencies to carry out the Operations & Maintenance (O&M) of PWS in rural areas. As per information received from States/ UTs,

1,833 PACS have been identified/ selected by 16 States/ UTs to provide O&M services at Panchayat/ Village level.

14. Micro-ATMs to Bank Mitra Cooperative Societies for providing doorstep financial services : Dairy and Fisheries cooperative societies can be made Bank Mitras of DCCBs and StCBs. To ensure their ease of doing business, transparency and financial inclusion, Micro-ATMs are also being given to these Bank Mitra Co-operative Societies with support from NABARD to provide 'Door-step Financial Services'. As a pilot project, about 2,700 Micro-ATMs have been distributed to Bank Mitra cooperative societies in Panchmahal and Banaskantha  Districts  of  Gujarat.  This  initiative  is  now  being  implemented  in  all  the Districts of the State of Gujarat.
15. Rupay Kisan Credit Card to Members of Milk Cooperatives : In order to expand the reach  of  DCCBs/  StCBs  and  to  provide  necessary  liquidity  to  the  members  of  Dairy Cooperative  societies,  Rupay  Kisan  Credit  Cards  (KCCs)  are  being  distributed  to  the members of cooperatives for providing credit at comparatively lower interest rates and to enable them to carry out other financial transactions. So far, 48,000 Rupay KCC have been distributed  in  Panchmahal  and  Banaskantha  Districts  of  Gujarat.  This  initiative  is  now being implemented in all the Districts of the State of Gujarat.
16. Formation of Fish Farmer Producer Organization (FFPO) : In order to provide market linkage and processing facilities to fishermen, NCDC has registered 69 FFPOs in the initial phase. In addition, Department of Fisheries, Government of India has allocated the work of converting  1000  existing  fisheries  cooperative  societies  into  FFPOs  to  NCDC,  with  an approved outlay of Rs. 225.50 crore.

## B. Strengthening the Urban and Rural Cooperative Banks

17. UCBs have been allowed to open new branches to expand their business: UCBs can now open  new  branches  up  to  10%  (maximum  5  branches)  of  the  existing  number  of branches in the previous financial year without prior approval of RBI.
18. UCBs have been allowed by RBI to offer doorstep services to their customers: Door step banking facility can now be provided by UCBs. Account holders of these banks can now avail various banking facilities at home such as cash withdrawal, cash deposit, KYC, demand draft and life certificate for pensioners, etc.
19. Cooperative banks have been allowed to make one-time settlement of outstanding loans, like Commercial Banks: Co-operative banks, through board-approved policies, can now provide the process for settlement with borrowers, along with technical write-off.
20. Time limit increased to achieve Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets given to UCBs : RBI has extended the timeline for UCBs to achieve Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets by two years i.e., up to March 31, 2026.
21. A Nodal Officer designated in RBI for regular interaction with UCBs : In order to meet the long pending demand of the cooperative sector for closer coordination and focused interaction, RBI has notified a nodal officer.
22. Individual  housing  loan  limit  more  than  doubled  by  RBI  for  Rural  and  Urban Cooperative Banks:
- a. Housing loan limit of Urban Cooperative Banks has now been doubled from Rs. 30 lakhs to Rs. 60 lakhs.
- b. Housing loan limit of Rural Cooperative Banks has been increased to two and a half times to Rs. 75 lakhs.
23. Rural  Cooperative  Banks  will  now  be  able  to  lend  to  commercial  real  estate/ residential housing sector, thereby diversifying their business : This will not only help Rural Cooperative Banks to diversify their business, but will benefit Housing cooperative societies also.
24. License fee reduced for Cooperative Banks :  License  fee  for  onboarding  Cooperative Banks to 'Aadhaar Enabled Payment System' (AePS) has been reduced by linking it to the number of transactions. Cooperative financial institutions will also be able to get the facility free of cost for the first three months of the pre-production phase. With this, farmers will now be able to get the facility of banking at their home with through biometrics.
25. Non-scheduled UCBs, StCBs and DCCBs notified as Member Lending Institutions (MLIs)  in  CGTMSE  Scheme  to  increase  the  share  of  cooperatives  in  lending: Cooperative banks will now be able to take advantage of risk coverage up to 85 percent on the loans given. Also, cooperative sector enterprises will also be able to get collateral free loans from cooperative banks now.
26. Notification of Scheduling norms for including Urban Cooperative Banks: UCBs that meet the 'Financially Sound and Well Managed' (FSWM) criteria and have maintained the minimum deposits required for classification as Tier 3 for the last two years are now eligible to be included in Schedule II of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 and get 'Scheduled' status.
27. Monetary ceiling doubled by RBI for Gold Loan: RBI has doubled monetary ceiling from Rs. 2 lakhs to Rs.4 lakh, for those UCBs that meet the PSL targets.
28. Umbrella Organization for Urban Cooperative Banks : RBI has accorded approval to the National Federation of Urban Co-operative Banks and Credit Societies Ltd. (NAFCUB) for the formation of an Umbrella Organization (UO) for the UCB sector, which will provide necessary IT infrastructure and operational support to around 1,500 UCBs.

## C. Relief to Cooperative Societies in the Income Tax Act

29. Surcharge reduced from 12 % to 7% for co-operative societies having income between Rs. 1 to 10 Cr.: This will reduce the burden of Income Tax on Cooperative Societies and more capital will be available with them to work for the benefit of their members.
30. MAT reduced for cooperatives from 18.5% to 15%: With this provision, now there is parity between Cooperative Societies and Companies in this regard.
31. Relief in cash transactions under section 269ST of the Income Tax Act: In order to remove difficulties in cash transactions by cooperatives under Section 269ST of IT Act, Government has issued a clarification that cash transaction of less than Rs. 2 lakhs done by a cooperative society with its distributor in a day will be considered separately, and will not be charged with income tax penalty.
32. Tax cut for new manufacturing Cooperative societies: Government has decided that a flat lower tax rate of 15% will be charged, compared to an earlier rate of up to 30% plus surcharge, for new cooperatives commencing manufacturing activities by March 31, 2024. This will encourage the formation of new cooperative societies in the manufacturing sector.
33. Increase  in  limit  of  Cash  Deposits  and  Cash  Loans  by  PACS  and  PCARDBs: Government  has  enhanced  the  limit  for  Cash  Deposits  and  Cash  Loans  by  PACS  and Primary  Cooperative Agriculture  and  Rural  Development  Banks  (PCARDBs)  from  Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 2 lakh per member. This provision will facilitate their activities, increase their business and benefit members of their societies.
34. Increase  in  the  limit  of  Tax  Deducted  at  Source  (TDS)  in  Cash  Withdrawal: Government  has  increased  the  cash  withdrawal  limit  of  cooperative  societies  without deduction of tax at source from Rs.1 crore to Rs.3 crore per year. This provision will save Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) for cooperative societies, which will enhance their liquidity.

## D. Revival of Cooperative Sugar Mills

35. Relief  from  Income  Tax  to  Sugar  Cooperative  Mills :  Government  has  issued  a clarification that cooperative sugar mills would not be subjected to additional income tax for paying higher sugarcane prices to farmers up to Fair and Remunerative or State Advised Price, from April, 2016 onwards.
36. Resolution of decades old pending issues related to Income Tax of Sugar Cooperative Mills :  Government  has  made  a  provision  in  its  Union  Budget  2023-24,  wherein  Sugar cooperatives  have  been  allowed  to  claim  as  expenditure  their  payments  to  sugarcane farmers for the period prior to assessment year 2016-17, giving them a relief of more than Rs.10,000 crore.
37. Rs. 10,000 crore loan schemes launched for strengthening of Sugar Cooperative Mills : Government  has  launched  a  scheme  through  NCDC  for  setting  up  ethanol  plants  or cogeneration plants or for working capital or for all three purposes. Loan amount of Rs. 5746.76 cr. has been sanctioned by NCDC to 36 Cooperative Sugar Mills so far.
38. Preference to Cooperative Sugar Mills in purchase of ethanol : Cooperative Sugar Mills have now been put at par with private companies for ethanol procurement by Government of India under the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP).
39. Reduction in GST on molasses from 28% to 5%: Government has decided to reduce the GST on molasses from 28% to 5% which will enable cooperative sugar mills to earn more profits for their members by selling molasses to distilleries with higher margins.

## E. Three new National Level Multi-State Societies

40. New National Multi-State Cooperative Seed Society for certified seeds :  Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative seed society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) as an umbrella organization for quality seed cultivation, production and distribution under a single brand. BBSSL so far has planted breeder seeds of Wheat, Mustard, and Pulses (Gram, Pea) on 366 Hectare land during  Rabi  season.  Similarly,  during  Kharif  season  breeder  seeds  of  Peddy,  Moong, Soyabean, Groundnut, Jowar and Guar have been planted on 148.26 Hectare land. As on date 11714 PACS/ Cooperative Societies have become member of BBSSL.
41. New  National  Multi-State Cooperative Organic  Society for  organic  farming : Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative organic society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) as an umbrella organization to produce, distribute and market certified and authentic organic products. As on date 3,775 PACS/ cooperative societies have become member of NCOL. So far, 12 organic products have been launched by NCOL under 'Bharat Organics' brand.
42. New  National  Multi-State  Cooperative  Export  Society  for  promoting  exports : Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative export society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL) as an umbrella organization  to  give  thrust  to  exports  from  cooperative  sector. As  on  date, about  7700 PACS/ cooperative societies have become member of NCEL. A total of 8,15,007 metric tonnes of commodities have been exported by NCEL. Out of which 8,01,790 metric tonnes of rice, 7,685 metric tonnes of onions, 4507 metric tonnes of sugar, 1025 metric tonnes of wheat have been exported.

## F. Capacity Building in Cooperatives

43. Promotion  of  training  and  awareness  through  National  Council  for  Cooperative Training (NCCT) : By increasing its reach, NCCT has conducted 3,619 training programs and provided training to 2,21,478 participants in FY 2023-24. From April to June 2024, NCCT has conducted 494 programmes against the quarterly target of 435 programmes and trained 19,591 participants against the target of 10875 participants.
44. Establishment  of  the  Cooperative  University: Cabinet  Note  has  been  prepared  by Ministry  of  Cooperation  for  setting  up  of  a  National  Cooperative  University  for Cooperative education, training, consultancy, research and development and a sustainable and quality supply of trained manpower.

## G. Use of Information Technology for 'Ease of Doing Business'

45. Computerization of the Central Registrar's Office : Central Registrar's office has been computerized to create a digital ecosystem for Multi-State Cooperative Societies, which will assist in processing applications and service requests in a time bound manner.
46. Scheme for computerization of office of RCSs in States and Union Territories :  To increase 'Ease of doing businesses for Cooperative Societies and create a digital ecosystem for  transparent  paperless  regulation  in  all  the  States/  Union  Territories,  a  Centrally Sponsored  Project  for  computerization  of  RCS  Offices  has  been  approved  by  the Government. Grants will be provided for purchase of hardware, development of software, etc. to the States/ UTs.
47. Computerization  of  Agriculture  and  Rural  Development  Banks  (ARDBs) :  To strengthen  the  long-term  cooperative  credit  structure,  the  project  of  computerization  of 1,851 units of Agriculture and Rural Development Banks (ARDBs) spread across 13 States/ Union Territories has been approved by the Government. NABARD is the implementing agency for the project and will develop a national level software for ARDBs. Hardware, support for digitization of legacy data, training to the employees, etc. will be provided under the  project.  So  far,  proposals  from  10  States/UTs  have  been  received  and  sanctioned. Further, GOI share amounting to Rs 4.26 crore was released to 8 States/UTs in FY 202324 and FY 2024-25 for procurement of hardware, digitization and setting up of support system.

## H. Other Initiatives

48. New National Cooperative Database for authentic and updated data repository : A database  of  cooperatives  in  the  country  has  been  prepared  with  the  support  of  State Governments to facilitate stakeholders in policy making and implementation of programmes/ schemes related to cooperatives across the country. So far, data of around 8.09 lakh cooperatives has been captured in the database.
49. Formulation  of  New  National  Cooperative  Policy :  A  National level  committee comprising  49  experts  and  stakeholders  drawn  from  all  over  the  Country  has  been constituted  to  formulate  the  New  National  Cooperative  Policy  for  enabling  a  vibrant ecosystem to realize the vision of 'Sahakar-se-Samriddhi'.
50. Multi-State  Co-operative  Societies  (Amendment)  Act,  2023 :  Amendment  has  been brought in the MSCS Act, 2002 to strengthen governance, enhance transparency, increase accountability, reform electoral process and incorporate provisions of 97 th Constitutional Amendment in the Multi State Cooperative Societies.
51. Inclusion  of  Cooperatives  as  'buyers'  on  GeM  portal :    Government  has  permitted cooperatives to register as 'buyer' on GeM, enabling them to procure goods and services from over 67 lakh vendors to facilitate economical purchases and greater transparency. So far, 559 cooperative societies have been onboarded on GeM as buyers.
52. Expansion of National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) to increase its range  and  depth :  NCDC  has  launched  new  schemes  in  various  sectors  such  as 'Swayamshakti  Sahkar'  for SHGs;  'Deerghavadhi  Krishak  Sahkar'  for  long term agricultural credit and 'Dairy Sahkar' for dairy. Total financial assistance of Rs. 60,618.47 Crores has been disbursed by NCDC in FY 2023-24. NCDC has disbursed Rs.19,287.17 crore so far in the financial year 2024-25. Government of India has permitted NCDC to issue bonds worth ₹2000 crore with government guarantee, subject to the adherence of specified terms and conditions. Further, NCDC is setting up sub-offices in 6 North Eastern States - Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Tripura with the  objective  of  taking  various  national  schemes  to  the  cooperative  societies  at  their doorstep.
53. Financial assistance by NCDC for Deep Sea Trawlers :  NCDC is providing financial assistance for projects related to deep sea trawlers in coordination with the Department of Fisheries,  Government  of  India.  Various  financial  assistances  have  been  sanctioned  by NCDC such as; Rs. 11.55 crores for purchase of 14 deep sea trawlers in Maharashtra at a block  cost  of  Rs  20.30  crores,  Rs  37.39  crores  to  Rajmata  Vikas  Macchimar  Sahakari

Sanstha  Limited,  Mumbai  for  setting  up  a  seafood  processing  unit  at  a  Block  Cost  of Rs.46.74 crores, Rs. 32.69 crores for Integrated Fisheries Development Project (IFDP) of Government of Kerala and NCDC has sanctioned the proposal of Shri Mahavir Macchimar Sahakari Mandali Limited, Gujarat for purchasing 30 deep sea trawlers with a block cost of Rs.36.00 crores.

54. Refund to Investors of Sahara Group of Societies :  A portal has been launched for making payments  to  the  genuine  depositors  of  the  cooperative  societies  of  Sahara  Group  in  a transparent  manner.  Disbursements  have  already  started  after  proper  identification  and submission of proof of their deposits and claims.

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