Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah informed that the Model Byelaws for PACS have been adopted by 31 States/UTs. Shah added that the model bylaws have incorporated the suggestions received from states.
Giving details, Shah says “More than 1,500 suggestions were received from various stakeholders including all the State Governments and Union Territories, which were suitably incorporated in the draft Model Byelaws”
Stressing that the adoption of model bye laws will lead to the growth of a robust cooperative movement in the country, Shah said the Model Bye Laws were circulated to all the States and UTs on 5th January, 2023.
In order to improve the viability of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and diversify their business activities to transform them into vibrant economic entities at Panchayat/ village level, Model Bye Laws have been framed, writes Shah.
Going into the history of how the Model Bye Laws was prepared, Shah said, a National Level Committee was constituted with representatives from NABARD, State Cooperative Banks, Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Co- operative Management (VAMNICOM), National Council for Cooperative Training (NCCT), etc.
The Draft Model Byelaws prepared by the committee were circulated on July 1, 2022 to all the stakeholders such as States/Union Territories, Central Government Ministries, NABARD, National Level Federations, State Cooperative Banks, District Central Cooperative Banks and general public for their comments and were also posted on the website of the Ministry of Co-operation for feedback/suggestions.
The Model Bye Laws will enable PACS to diversify their business activities by undertaking more than 25 business activities, including dairy, fishery, floriculture, setting up godowns, procurement of foodgrains, fertilizers, seeds, LPG/CNG/Petrol/Diesel distributorship, short-term & long-term credit, custom hiring centers, Fair Price Shops (FPS), community irrigation, Business Correspondent activities, Common Service Centre, etc.
Provisions have also been made to make the membership of PACS more inclusive and broad-based, giving adequate representation to women and Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes. By adopting Model Bye Laws, PACS would be able to serve as multi-service centers, improve their operational efficiency, transparency and accountability and provide agricultural credit and various non-credit services, etc. in rural areas.
The Model Bye Laws will help farmers in getting short-term, medium-term and long-term credit and other services such as fertilizers, seeds, pesticides, storage facilities, banking services, etc. at one stop for meeting their varied needs.
Farmers will also be able to obtain benefits of social security schemes, micro insurance, more than 300 e-services of CSC, etc. Through diversification of business activities, Model Bye Laws will also enable farmers to get additional and stable sources of income.