Kolkata: CM Suvendu Adhikari on Monday described the cooperative sector as an “alternative economy” and said a stronger cooperative movement could open up new opportunities in Bengal, besides empowering women. Cooperatives could attain the status of banks in the coming days, he added.
Speaking at an event celebrating the 35th anniversary of North 24 Parganas Women’s Co-operative Society at Madhyamgram, Adhikari said: “The cooperative movement constitutes a broader economic movement and needs to be expanded in Bengal. Strengthening cooperatives will create more employment opportunities and contribute to women’s empowerment.”
Saying that development of the sector could open up new economic avenues, Adhikari alleged that the cooperative movement had been neglected over the past 15 years. Of more than 6,000 cooperative societies in Bengal, over 2,000 had become defunct, he claimed.
Taking a dig at former CM Mamata Banerjee without naming her, Adhikari said: “Whenever anyone tried to tell her something, she would say, ‘I know everything.’ I say that I know some things, but I am still learning many things.”
Adhikari alleged that elections had not been held for years in several cooperative institutions, including State Cooperative Bank and primary cooperative societies. “The previous govt did not try to understand what cooperatives were, nor did it make efforts to take the movement forward,” he said.
Adhikari also cooperative societies “to stay away from nepotism and political considerations while sanctioning and recovering loans”, and urged them to complete their yearly audits by Sept.
The CM also talked about reducing management expenses. “When a guest arrives, there is no need to honour them with three things. Give one thing — either a flower, an uttariya or a statue of the Mother Goddess. There is no need to give so many gifts,” he said.
Adhikari said the Constitution recognised the cooperative system as an important institution of governance. He described Parliament as representing Union govt, legislators as forming state govt, and panchayats and municipalities as local govts.
“Cooperatives are the fourth govt. The stronger you make the cooperative sector, the greater the new economic possibilities will be,” he said.
State food minister Ashok Kirtaniya and Bharat Sevashram Sangha’s Kartik Maharaj were present at the programme. Madhyamgram Trinamool MLA and former state food minister Rathin Ghosh, along with Madhyamgram municipality chairman Nimai Ghosh, were also there.