Shah: Co-operatives should open accounts in cooperative banks

Union Minister for Home and Cooperation, Amit Shah, urged cooperative institutes to open their bank accounts only with cooperative banks to prevent deposits from the sector flowing to nationalised banks and private commercial banks. This, he said, would enhance the capacity of cooperative banks to meet credit requirements.

Shah pointed out that even farmers who are members of primary agriculture cooperative credit societies (PACS) that are, in turn, the members of district cooperative banks, have their savings accounts with public sector banks or private banks, thus depriving cooperative banks of deposits.

“Ultimately, money from the cooperative institutes goes to SBI and private banks. Due to this, cooperative banks do not have enough deposits while the private banks and State Bank of India throw their rule book at us (when we approach them for finance),” he said. Shah also announced that the Gujarat State Cooperative (GSC) Bank, under an initiative of the Central government, has undertaken a pilot project in Banaskantha and Panchmahal districts to persuade cooperative institutes to have their bank accounts only with cooperative banks.

The pilot project has produced tremendous results, Shah stressed. The cooperative banks in the districts achieved 82 per cent of their Kisan Credit Card (KCC) target, 100 per cent of the micro ATMs installation target, and 159 per cent of the target set to open new bank accounts.