Having failed to impress the Cooperation Ministry on the need to reconsider changes made in the Cooperative Education Fund in MSCS Amendment Bill 2022 in the past, the NCUI leadership has suddenly seen a new hope in the development in Lok Sabha on Tuesday when Amit Shah announced referring the Bill to a Joint Committee of the Parliament.
Without losing time, NCUI President Dileep Sanghani announced that the co-operators would try to impress the members of the Joint Committee on the issue of Cooperative Education Fund and how its custody to NCUI is crucial for the growth of co-op education and training.
A press statement issued by NCUI, reads” Referring to the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill, being referred to a Joint Committee of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Dileep Sanghani, President, National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI) and Chairman, IFFCO, said that NCUI will draw attention of the committee to some of the contentious provisions of the Bill so that the democratic and autonomous character of cooperatives is not affected.
The statement further continues “Sanghani is optimistic that the Committee would give due consideration to the views of NCUI.”
He further said that the custody of the Cooperative Education Fund, as in the past, should be with NCUI. Otherwise, it will affect the autonomy of cooperatives in states. NCUI is an apex organization of the cooperative movement with focus on cooperative education and training.
Interestingly, several MPs of the Joint Committee are old friends of Dileep Sanghani who himself has been a four-time MP in the Lok Sabha in the past. “Past relationships help you convey your message rather effortlessly”, said Sanghani who sounded confident of a turnaround in the matter.
Though the name of the Chairman of the Joint Committee is yet to be announced by the Lok Sabha Speaker Shri Om Birla (who himself is a committed co-operator), those from Lok Sabha who would be members of the Committee have been named by Shah himself. The committee consists of 21 members from Lok Sabha and 10 members from the Rajya Sabha.
The Lok Sabha members include, Chandra Prakash Joshi, Jagdambika Pal, Parbatbhai Savabhai Patel, Poonamben Hematbhai Maadam, Ramdas Chandrabhanji Tadas, i Annasaheb Shankar Jolle, Dr. Nishikant Dubey, Smt. Sunita Duggal, Brijendra Singh, Smt. Jaskaur Meen, Ram Kripal Yadav, Dr. Dhal Singh Bisen, Suresh Kodikunnil, Manish Tewari, Smt. Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, Kalyan Banerjee, Krishna Devarayalu Lavu, Hemant Shriram Patil, Dulal Chandra Goswami, Chandra Sekhar Sahu and Girish Chandra.
The Committee shall make a report to this House by the last day of the first week of the second part of the Budget Session, 2023 in other respects the Rules of Procedure of this House relating to the Parliamentary Committee shall apply to such variations and modifications as the Speaker may make.Ten names from Rajya Sabha have not been announced yet.
Interestingly, NCUI is in unison with the government on almost all other amendments in the MSCS Act except Coop Education Fund. The disappointment is all the more acute as the money collected in the Fund comes completely from the cooperative sector with not even a pai from the government. “When it’s our money, why should the government control it”, several co-operators told the Indian Cooperative.