With elections of Chhattisgarh state Assembly looming large on the horizon, political parties are girding up their loins as if to take a plunge. Cooperative societies with their grass roots level contact have always been a significant factor in this connection. No wonder, BJP held a meeting of its Cooperative Cell, its Raipur office at the Kushabhau Thakre Parisar recently.
During the meeting, it was decided to hold a Sahakarita Bachao Aandolan’ [Save the Cooperative Movement] against the ruling congress party on 30th May 2023 at the district level.
In the meeting, BJP state president and MP Arun Sao was the Chief Speaker and scores of co-operators connected with the cooperative movement were also present on this occasion.
Speaking in the meeting, Markfed former Vice-Chairman and Convener of the Cooperative Cell Shashikant Diwedi slammed the state govt. saying various schemes of the central government are not being implemented in the state and the ruling congress is destroying the cooperative movement in Chhattisgarh, he charged.
“We have planned to launch a massive agitation at the district level on 30th May 2023 against the Chhattisgarh congress government led by Bhupesh Baghel for not taking any initiatives in strengthening the cooperative movement of the state”, Diwedi told the Indian Cooperative correspondent on the phone.
He added, “The state government is not focusing on addressing the long pending issues related to the state co-op movement. Even elections of co-ops have been due for a long time. The Baghel government has made Congress leaders as Chairmen in several co-operative banks”, he said.
Reacting to the development, Congress MLA from Raipur Rural and NCUI GC Member Satyanarayan Sharma said, “Our government has done many things to empower the farmers of the state, which is the main objective of the cooperative movement. We are procuring the farmers’ crops at a good price. We have even waived off loans worth Rs 11,000 crore”, he said.
“When the BJP government was in power, they destroyed the movement by doing nothing to strengthen the co-op movement. Many new primary level societies have been formed and lots of other things are being done under the Baghel government. We will soon be holding elections to co-ops. We are sure the farmers of the state would reject the BJP”, he added.
There are more than 2000 PACCs and LAMPs in the state and six district cooperative banks. It bears recall that the state government has appointed congress leaders as Chairmen of almost all the district central cooperative banks.
Readers would note that the agri cooperative lender-National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) provided a financial assistance of Rs 29,901 crore to cooperatives in Chhattisgarh in the last three years.
