Lok Sabha Question No. 676 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-02-03
Subject: Primary Agricultural Credit Societies
Ministry: COOPERATION
Asked by: Shri Krishna Prasad Tenneti, Shri Damodar Agrawal, Shri Bibhu Prasad Tarai, Smt. Lovely Anand, Shri Rahul Singh Lodhi, Shri Khagen Murmu, Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya, Shri Captain Brijesh Chowta, Smt. Smita Uday Wagh, Shri Praveen Patel, Smt. Poonamben Hematbhai Maadam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COOPERATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 676 TO BE ANSWERED ON  03 rd  FEBRUARY, 2025

## Primary Agricultural Credit Societies

† 676. Shri Damodar Agrawal:

Smt. Smita Uday Wagh: Shri Captain Brijesh Chowta:

Smt. Poonamben Hematbhai Maadam: Shri Praveen Patel:

Shri Krishna Prasad Tenneti:

Shri Khagen Murmu: Smt. Lovely Anand:

Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya: Shri Rahul Singh Lodhi:

Shri Bibhu Prasad Tarai:

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

- (a) whether the Government has conducted any independent or third-party evaluation of the newly  formed  multipurpose  PACS,  dairy  and  fisheries  cooperatives  and  if  so,  the  details thereof;
- (b)  whether  the  Government  has  undertaken  a  State-wise  and  regional  analysis  of  the distribution of more than 32,000 newly established cooperatives, particularly in aspirational districts and backward regions, including Maharashtra and Jalgaon Lok Sabha constituency, and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether these cooperatives have been digitised and integrated with platforms such as Core Banking Solution (CBS), e-NAM or cooperative banking systems, and if so, the number of PACS made digitally operational;
- (d)  whether  any  special  provisions  or  guidelines  exist  to  ensure  participation  of  small  and marginal farmers, women and Self-Help Groups (SHGs);
- (e)  if  so,  the  details  of  such  provisions,  including  capacity-building  and  financial  support measures implemented in Maharashtra, including Jalgaon district; and
- (f) the number of multipurpose PACS, dairy, and fisheries cooperatives established in Dakshina Kannada  district  of  Karnataka,  along  with  their  current  operational  status  and  level  of digitisation?

## ANSWER

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

(a)  The  Government  of  India  has  approved  the  plan  to  establish  new  multipurpose PACS/dairy/fisheries cooperatives, aiming to cover all panchayats and villages in the country over the next five years. As per the National Cooperative Database, a total of 32,802  new PACS, Dairy and Fishery Cooperative Societies have been registered; and 15,793 Dairy and

Fisheries Cooperative Societies have been strengthened as on 20.01.2026 across the country. Independent or third-party evaluation of the newly formed multipurpose Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), dairy and fisheries cooperatives have not been contemplated, yet.

(b)  The  Government  undertakes  State-wise  and  regional  analysis  using  the  National Cooperative Database (NCD) to identify gaps in cooperative coverage, including aspirational districts and underserved regions. The details of State-wise distribution 32,802 new PACS, Dairy and Fishery Cooperative Societies including aspirational districts and backward regions and Maharashtra and Jalgaon district is at Annexure.

(c)  As on date, out of 79,630 PACS sanctioned out of which 61,478 PACS have been digitized and  have  been  facilitated  to  undertake  initiatives  such  as  Shared  Core  Banking  Solutions (CBS), AePS, UPI, and digital platforms for cooperative banking have also been rolled out to modernise cooperative financial services.

(d) and (e) The Model Bye-laws for Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) have been developed  and  circulated  to  all  States  and  Union  Territories  to  transform  PACS  into multipurpose, inclusive and transparent institutions. These Bye-laws provide for broad-based membership and ensure adequate representation of women and Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes  (SC/ST)  in  cooperative  governance.  Further,  the  Multi-State  Cooperative  Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023 mandates reservation of two seats for women and one seat for SC/ST members on the boards of multi-State cooperative societies. The National Cooperation Policy (NCP) 2025 also emphasizes promotion of membership and leadership roles for women and weaker sections.

The Model Bye-laws enable PACS to function as multipurpose service centres, allowing small and marginal farmers to access affordable credit, quality inputs and allied services at a single point, and to benefit from activities such as warehousing, custom hiring centres and primary processing, thereby improving income realization. Support for women and SHGs is further strengthened through schemes such as Swayam Shakti Sahakar Yojana for onward lending to Women SHGs and Nandini Sahakar for promoting women-led cooperatives. As of late 2025, 32 States and Union Territories have adopted or aligned their laws with the Model Bye-laws.

## Implementation in Maharashtra, including Jalgaon District:

In Maharashtra, 12,178 PACS have been sanctioned for computerization and ₹130.73 crore has been released for hardware procurement, ERP deployment, training and support systems. All 352 sanctioned PACS in Jalgaon district have been fully onboarded on the ERP-based common national software, achieving 100% digitization. Extensive capacity-building efforts are being undertaken through national and regional training institutions, including VAMNICOM (Pune) and ICM (Nagpur and Pune), which trained 37,070 participants between 2024 and December 2025.  Additionally,  the  Regional  Training  Centre  of  LINAC  in  Maharashtra  conducted  65 training programmes during April 2022 -December 2025, covering 5,693 participants.

Financial support is being extended through the National Cooperative  Development Corporation (NCDC). As on 25.01.2026, NCDC has cumulatively disbursed ₹13,575.28 crore to cooperatives in Maharashtra over the last five years, including ₹13,186.58 crore in t he sugar sector, ₹180.28 crore in textiles, and ₹43.57 crore in fisheries. Further, the Jalgaon Milk Union has proposed formation of 117 new Dairy Cooperative Societies during 2025 -26 to enhance farmer participation. District-level initiatives, including livestock health programmes under the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) 2025, have been undertaken to support members. Under  the  World's  Largest  Grain  Storage  Plan,  15  PACS  in  Maharashtra  have  completed godown construction, helping farmers avoid distress sales and improve price realization.

(f)  In Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, 121 PACS, 420 Dairy Cooperative Societies (DCS), and 22 Fishery Cooperative Societies (FCS) are established, out of which only one FCS is non-operational and digitisation of all the PACS has been initiated.

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## Annexure

| Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   | Newly Registered Cooperatives   |
|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|
| S. No                           | State                           | Covered districts               | PACS                            | DCS                             | FCS                             | Grand Total                     |
| 1                               | ANDAMANANDNICOBAR ISLANDS       | 3                               | 1                               | 1                               | 11                              | 13                              |
| 2                               | ANDHRA PRADESH                  | 21                              | 11                              | 1,034                           | 2                               | 1,047                           |
| 3                               | ARUNACHAL PRADESH               | 25                              | 121                             | 15                              | 20                              | 156                             |
| 4                               | ASSAM                           | 34                              | 469                             | 591                             | 81                              | 1,141                           |
| 5                               | BIHAR                           | 38                              | 57                              | 4,589                           | 2                               | 4,648                           |
| 6                               | CHHATTISGARH                    | 33                              | 469                             | 351                             | 322                             | 1,142                           |
| 7                               | GOA                             | 2                               | 37                              | 5                               | 3                               | 45                              |
| 8                               | GUJARAT                         | 33                              | 525                             | 706                             | 23                              | 1,254                           |
| 9                               | HARYANA                         | 20                              | 31                              | 161                             | 6                               | 198                             |
| 10                              | HIMACHAL PRADESH                | 11                              | 116                             | 708                             | 6                               | 830                             |
| 11                              | JAMMU AND KASHMIR               | 20                              | 216                             | 1,313                           | 36                              | 1,565                           |
| 12                              | JHARKHAND                       | 24                              | 127                             | 257                             | 177                             | 561                             |
| 13                              | KARNATAKA                       | 31                              | 243                             | 1,097                           | 45                              | 1,385                           |
| 14                              | KERALA                          | 0                               | 0                               | 0                               | 0                               | 0                               |
| 15                              | LADAKH                          | 2                               | 3                               | 3                               | 1                               | 7                               |
| 16                              | LAKSHADWEEP                     | 1                               | 0                               | 0                               | 7                               | 7                               |
| 17                              | MADHYAPRADESH                   | 52                              | 663                             | 874                             | 226                             | 1,763                           |
| 18                              | MAHARASHTRA                     | 32                              | 149                             | 1,140                           | 161                             | 1,450                           |
| 19                              | MANIPUR                         | 14                              | 104                             | 24                              | 67                              | 195                             |
| 20                              | MEGHALAYA                       | 12                              | 228                             | 16                              | 7                               | 251                             |
| 21                              | MIZORAM                         | 10                              | 97                              | 2                               | 2                               | 101                             |
| 22                              | NAGALAND                        | 13                              | 18                              | 5                               | 18                              | 41                              |
| 23                              | ODISHA                          | 30                              | 1,543                           | 679                             | 59                              | 2,281                           |
| 24                              | PUDUCHERRY                      | 3                               | 4                               | 3                               | 3                               | 10                              |
| 25                              | PUNJAB                          | 23                              | 1                               | 463                             | 43                              | 507                             |
| 26                              | RAJASTHAN                       | 33                              | 1,387                           | 2,174                           | 22                              | 3,583                           |
| 27                              | SIKKIM                          | 6                               | 24                              | 61                              | 3                               | 88                              |
| 28                              | TAMIL NADU                      | 37                              | 28                              | 794                             | 25                              | 847                             |
| 29                              | TELANGANA                       | 18                              | 0                               | 173                             | 102                             | 275                             |
| 30                              | THEDD&DNH                       | 3                               | 6                               | 1                               | 2                               | 9                               |
| 31                              | TRIPURA                         | 8                               | 288                             | 2                               | 19                              | 309                             |
| 32                              | UTTAR PRADESH                   | 75                              | 1,099                           | 4,340                           | 486                             | 5,925                           |
| 33                              | UTTARAKHAND                     | 13                              | 621                             | 263                             | 120                             | 1,004                           |
| 34                              | WEST BENGAL                     | 16                              | 24                              | 137                             | 3                               | 164                             |
|                                 | Grand Total                     | 696                             | 8,710                           | 21,982                          | 2,110                           | 32,802                          |

|        |   Maharashtra |   Jalgaon |
|--------|---------------|-----------|
| M-PACS |           149 |         0 |
| DCS    |          1140 |        35 |
| FCS    |           161 |         5 |
| Total  |          1450 |        40 |