The Delhi Milk Scheme begun way back in 1959 as a part of the union agriculture ministry has been incurring losses over the last years. The scheme is on the block now and the Gujarat Milk Marketing Federation-the parent company of the famous Amul has shown interest in buying it.

GCMMF’s move is prompted by certain concrete calculations: using the DMS infrastructure and its great market potential. According to Gcmmf chairman Vipul Chaudhary, DMS has more than 350 outlets in the national capital and has a production capacity of half a million litres of milk a day.

GCMMF presently boasts an annual turnover of nearly Rs.12 thousand crore but it is active exploring new areas outside Gujarat for its expansion. It would invest Rs. 3000 crore enhancing both its production and procurement capacity in the next few years, said GCMMF’s new Chairman Vipul Chaudhary.

Talking to Indian Cooperative, Mr Chaudhary said we merely want to operate DMS professionally and we believe that business is better managed by businessmen.

Bhavin,  Ahmedabad

Respected Sir,

I am an owner of flat in Ahmedabad and our society is having a total 6 blocks.

Builder also made a temple in our common plot which was covered with small wall with separate entry. Later he stopped maintaining the flats and finally our electric connection was cut about 3 years ago.

In tide over the situation individual block members started collecting money and maintaining their block.

Builder is taking transfer fee officially Rs 25000 in cash and without receipt and Rs 75000 for each resale of flats but not giving any money to block members. He is not even sharing books of account.

Frustrated, a few residents constituted a core committee to fight against builder and floated Owners’ Association under Act of year 1860 in January 2012. The committee has 2 persons from each block.

Taking opinion of majority members Owners Association has broken a wall surrounding temple in common plot area to use it as a parking space.

This new association gave notice in newspaper that all future resale & transfer would be effected through Association only.

But NOC of new association is not accepted by the bank and it is not giving any loan. The bank is asking NOC from builder association.

Association has filed case for securing books of accounts from the builder. It came to light that the builder had sold common plot area constructed with temple to one trust, so the Association has also filed a case against that.

Now this new association  made a resolution in general meeting in April 2012 that occupied members of flat / closed flat owner would pay monthly maintenance charges of Rs. 500.00 and tenant members ( Where original member is renting out the flat as in my case) should pay Rs. 1000.00 maintenance charges.

If anybody fails to do this, service such as water supply, Lift, cleaning will be stopped.

This I came to know when I rented my flat in June 2012. I opposed the provision and asked to them to give me copy of bye laws.  Even after 3 months, they have not given me any copy.

I came to know that they have asked my block committee member to cut water line of my flat and asked my tenant not to use of lift. They also asked cleaning agency not to lend any service to my flat.

Have they any right to ask 100% higher payment then occupied members? Kindly guide me that what should I do and which kind of action I should take against them as well as against builder for selling common plot area to trust.

I C Naik

You should write to the Deputy Registrar of Societies narrating the facts relating to maintenance charges for rented flat and stopping utility services. Stopping utility services is in violation of a Supreme Court order under which housing societies could not stop essential services for any reason what so ever.

You have to be prepared to fight it out in Cooperative Court. But on both scores the Committee’s actions are illegal and cannot be sustained for long time.

Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) is a new political formation geared to making politics in Gujarat a triangular affair. The party is a collection of those elements from the BJP who do not approve of the ways in which Narendra Modi governs the state. Keshu Bhai leads it.

The new party has decided to take on Narendra Modi in the polls for the board of directors of Baroda District Cooperative Milk Producers Union.  The party will contest all the 13 seats in the polls to be held later this month.

Baroda milk union is one of the members of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation(GCMMF) which produces Amul. Banas Dairy, another member represented by former Chairman of GCMMF Parthi Bhatol is also going to  polls this month.

Observers see the new party as a spoiler in that the polls so far had been mere an affair between groups supported by the BJP and the Congress.

The new party views the upcoming elections in the dairy organisation as an opportunity to establish its base in the countryside.

The emergence of GPP has caused some unease in the political circles of the state even if the two main parties are trying to make the development seem insignificant.

A senior source at the Baroda milk cooperative union is quoted as saying it would not be a surprise if the new party upended the traditional arrangement.

Rajkot cooperative bank has displayed the true spirit of a cooperative bank by becoming farmer-friendly in real sense of the word.It is trying to check farmers’s suicide in its own way.

Saurashtra region of Gujarat is badly affected by drought and this has prompted the Rajkot district cooperative bank to waive interest on loans given to about two hundred thousand farmers.

The total amount of agricultural loans involved is Rs 1225 crore.

There have been reports of farmers committing suicides in the region.

Sources say farmers who have suffered serious financial losses would be provided with additional loan of Rs 20,000 per acre.

While  the  recent election of Jyotindra Mehta  as chairman of Gujarat  Urban Cooperative  Banks Federation  was  absolutely  smooth , Dr Dollar Kotecha’s  election as vice-president of  the  federation was controversial.

Most members of the federation fiercely opposed Kotecha especially on the ground that he too was from Saurastra region.

Finally Kotecha could carry the day because the state BJP president Faldu intervened in his favour.   Kotecha is supposed to be an acolyte of cooperative minister of Gujarat Sanghani.

President J. Mehta said the urban cooperative banks would work with renewed vigour and soon work out an arrangement with the insurance companies getting all shareholders accident coverage.

There is an eerie silence in GCMMF at Anand in Gujarat these days. Elections are round the corner but when- is not known to anyone. And who are in fray is another question haunting the stake holders.

Talking to Indian Cooperative on Monday the outgoing Chairman Parthi Bhatol once again reiterated that he does not know if he is a candidate. Sources confide to Indian Cooperative that he is waiting for “order” of his political bosses.

But Bhatol clarified to Indian Cooperative that what he waits for is the members’ reaction. If they want me to contest I would do so, he said emphatically.

When Indian Cooperative contacted Mr R S Sodhi, the Managing Director of GCMMF to know the date of elections, Mr Sodhi said “no dates have come so far from the office of District Magistrate”.

Readers could recall that court had asked Collector to complete the elections procedure within a month. Board has already completed its tenure in July.

GCMMF, the cooperative federation of 16 milk unions has in its byelaws stipulation of a perpetual board. Explaining this further, Sodhi said that unless the next board meeting takes place, the erstwhile board would continue.

The dairy cooperative giant passes through the motion of a board meeting after every three months. Even the date of holding next board meeting is to be fixed in consultation with the district magistrate.

But Mr Sodhi sounded confident that within a month a new board would be constituted.

Vipul Chaudhary remains a potent challenger, besides Bhatol. But each of the board members of GCMMF has to first get elected from the milk union which he represents. Election of Banas dairy is round the corner.

Bhatol’s victory at Banas would embolden him to contend for the election of Chairmanship of GCMMF. Till then fingers would remain crossed.

Exposure to cooperatives and introduction of new technology has catapulted an obscure Paliganj tucked away in Bihar to limelight.

The experiment had started in 2000 under ” mission mode program of technology mission 2020′ inspired by India’s former President APJ Abdul Kalam.

Paliganj farmers were sent on trips to Amalsad, Chikku fruit Cooperative and Warana Pura in Maharashtra so that they could understand the merits of the cooperative system.

Gautam Goswami who directed the whole experiment in Paliganj exuded happiness and enthusiasm while recently talking to the media about it. According to him, Paliganj earlier produced grains a mere two tonnes per hectare but thanks to the technology mission the farm productivity in the area has   surged to about 5 tonnes per hectare.

The Paliganj experiment is being supervised by technology information forecasting and assessment council of the Ministry of Science and Technology, government of India.  The place is within commuting distance of Patna.

Sources say   the new idea of farming being tried here has meant   more information and   exposure for farmers.  There is optimism that the Paliganj experiment would influence the future of farming in the whole of Bihar, they add.

A PIL filed in the Gujarat High Court has challenged the constitutional validity of the central laws regulating co-operative societies, on the ground that it is a state subject.

An NGO, Consumer Protection and Analytic Committee(CPAC), in a PIL has sought annulment and quashing of amendment made in the Banking Regulation Act in the year 1966.

The division bench of acting chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J B Pardiwala, after hearing advocate Vishwas Shah for the petitioner adjourned the matter for three weeks.

“The primary object of the aforesaid amendment was to bring Cooperative Banks within the discipline of RBI which was constituted by RBI Act, 1934. This has resulted in dual control pattern being created,” says the petition.

“Thus a co-operative society for incorporation, regulation and winding up of co-operative society is governed by State law and the regulation of banking business is by the Central government,” the petition said.

The petitioner has pointed out that from the legal point of view all co-operative banks are co-operative societies, but a co-operative society may or may not be a Co-operative Bank. “Unless it has intra-state functions, all co-operative societies are regulated only by State co-operative laws, while co-operative banks are regulated both by central banking laws and state co-operative societies acts as well.

This has resulted in dual control pattern being created for co-operative banks,” the petition has claimed.

Submitting that, the dual control has created several complications and problems for smooth functioning of co-operative societies, the PIL has demanded the HC to declare that the Union of India has no legislative competence to enact law for Co-operative societies registered under the State co-operative law- PTI

The Reserve Bank of India has imposed a monetary penalty of Rupees five lakh on Pragati Sahkari Bank located in Vadodara.

Pragati Sahkari bank was faulted on the counts of  director related advances.The UCB was also found to  grant of unsecured loans beyond the stipulated ceiling.Last but not the least the bank was found not reporting frauds to Reserve Bank of India.

Dear sir,

I and my all family members were depositing money regularly in Shree Dabhoi Sindh cooperative credit society , Dabhol (Dist-Baroda,Gujarat ). This society  is not working properly since 2006. We renew our FDs on regular intervals. As per Manager, he is not able to give back amount like 5 lacks as the bank has not given that money to BOB-Surat and they have not refunded till now.

I have given written complaint to Narmada Bhuvan -District Registrar -Vadodara about one and a half years ago. He has also issued notice to the Society. But committee members have not bothered to reply.

Frustrated, I went to District Registrar last week, but did not get satisfactory reply there also. I plan to approach “Grahak Suraksha” for getting back our hard earned money.

As per my information Cooperative credit society should audit its account every year. But from the year 2006 this society has not bothered to do so.

1) Can you guide me what is the best way to get my money back- “Grahak Suraksha ” or  ”Board of Nominee ” ?

2) Has the District Registrar power enough to help me ?

IC Naik:

It’s a high risk investment. Even amounts deposited in a Cooperative Bank are not risk free to the extent deposit exceeds Rs 100,000.

You have already initiated various steps, however the most important is raising a dispute before Cooperative Court through the Registrar.

The Registrar having taken cognizance of the dispute, it should be easy / faster to go to Court as Registar’s clearance is required before filing a dispute in Cooperative Court.