Illegal transactions made by Multi-state multi-purpose credit cooperative societies have pushed thousands of people into penury across the country, says a news outlet.
Sources say these fly by night outfits appear on the scene promising unusually big returns on money invested and after cheating people either go bankrupt or just close down.
By definition, multi-state multi-purpose cooperative societies are bodies which are operational in more than one state. Among them are credit societies, banks, sugar and textile mills. However, while the banks come under the dual control of the central registrar and the Reserve Bank of India, credit societies are answerable only to the registrar.
Powers of registration and control of such bodies are vested with the central registrar who operates under the Union Ministry of Cooperation and Agriculture. Of the 1,246 such societies in the country, Maharashtra alone has 550, the highest in the country.
Maharashtra is the worst affected state where the state Cooperative Commissioner’s office has received numerous complaints about frauds.