Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Rajya Sabha member from Kerala A.A. Rahim launched a range of products developed by Kerala co-operatives during the ongoing India International Trade Fair (IITF) at Pragati Maidan on Tuesday evening.
Alex Varghese (IAS) Registrar of Cooperative Societies, and cooperators from Kerala were also present on the occasion.
The products include Pokkali Rice, Marayoor Jaggery, Coconut Oil, Pepper Powder, Cardamom, Coriander Powder, Turmeric Powder, LemonGrass Oil, Payasam Mix, Unakkalari, Ginger Coffee, Roasted Coffee Beans and others.
Around 17 cooperative societies’ products have been showcased at the Kerala Pavilion of the Trade fair. One of officials from Kerala Cooperative Department Vijay Kumar told Indian Cooperative, “Our sales have gone up to Rs 6 lakh and we are hoping that till the end of the trade fair we will reach up to Rs 10 lakh”.
Soon after the launching of the products, Rahim said, “The cooperative movement of Kerala is not only the backbone of our state but also helping in the economic development of the state. Co-ops are doing a wonderful job in our state”.
“Co-ops are showing their power at the IITF and also getting good feedback from the onlookers. The Kerala Cooperative Development Model is a way to achieve socially inclusive and sustainable development”, he added.
“The wide network of Co-operatives in Kerala is engaged in various promotional activities particularly in agricultural credit, public distribution system, marketing, agro-processing, consumer activities, public health, education including Professional education, housing, insurance and others. At present the co-operative sector has got a deposit size of more than Rs 2.49 lakh cr”, he underlined.
He further added, “During the floods of 2018 the co-operative Sector initiated a project called Co-operative Alliance to Rebuild Kerala (CARe Kerala). Through this project, so far, we have constructed and handed over 2091 houses all over Kerala. The formation of 44 Youth Cooperative Societies is another major initiative of this sector”, Varghese asserted.
According to the data, there are 16,232 primary level co-ops out of which 4,147 are credit co-ops and the rest are non-credit co-ops. The total no of co-ops are 16,255. Their deposits and loans are Rs 2.49 lakh crore and Rs 1.86 lakh crore respectively. The total business is around Rs 4.3 lakh crore and a membership base of 2.81 crore.