Southern States - Kerala

Pension for post-1974 retirees from coops.

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM APRIL 29. An Ordinance approved by the Cabinet today for dissolution of District Cooperative Banks (DCBs) provides for grant of pension to all cooperative employees who had retired from service since January 1, 1974.

The Cooperation Minister, M.V. Raghavan, said the pension would be available to all retired employees who are alive. He claimed that the Ordinance was intended to restore democracy in the cooperative sector. The LDF Government had butchered cooperative democracy by restricting the right to vote in DCB elections to only credit societies. With the Ordinance, all cooperative bodies would get the right to vote, he said.

The Minister said the Ordinance would also remove the concept of `effective membership' which was often misinterpreted to the advantage of those in power. Similarly, a provision was also being incorporated in the Act to provide for tabling of no confidence motions against elected director boards of the DCBs. Once the Ordinance takes effect, all the DCBs in the State would stand dissolved. Since the Kerala State Cooperative Bank comprised nominees of the DCBs, its director board also ceases to exist. Elections to the DCBs would be held at the earliest, he added.

Mr. Raghavan said majority of primary cooperative credit societies in the State were running up huge losses and were eating into their deposit base. This could not be allowed to continue.

The cooperative sector should learn to curb expenditure and live within its means. The Sahitya Pravarthaka Cooperative Society (SPCS) had sunk because of corruption and misuse of funds.

Replying to questions, he said the Government would issue termination notice to the Kumar Group with which it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 1995.

The project would be awarded to some agency capable of taking it up on BOT-basis, he added.

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