‘Inept management and mounting losses’ have left the Kerala State Cooperative Consumers’ Federation (Consumerfed) in the throes of a crisis.
A white paper prepared by its Managing Director said the accumulated losses touched Rs.1,052.49 crore against its net asset value of Rs.545.62 crore. The federation’s propensity to stray into new domains without adequate expertise had cost it dearly and also left the future of 1,720 employees in the lurch. The accumulated losses had been consistently soaring, from Rs.7,931.82 lakh in 2007-08 to Rs.16,023.73 lakh in 2013-14.
In addition to the lapses in management, including shoddy accounting and maintenance of records, the paper listed out a series of ventures which the federation had to relinquish midway for want of proper planning. The launch of the Nanma scheme for selling 10 essential commodities at 20 per cent below market rate through Nanma Stores, was a case in point. The federation decided against seeking government support and resolved to redeem the loss incurred by selling essentials through the sale of stationery and cosmetics, but it misfired, the report said.
While the outlets registered record sales in rice, sugar, and coconut oil, the sale of cosmetics and stationery remained alarmingly low. The outlets were opened in the proximity of Triveni stores and also mobile Triveni stores plying on the routes. The fate of 1,720 persons employed to man the stores had become uncertain. The management was forced to close down the Nanma packing centres. The mushrooming of Triveni stores, which were overstaffed and without adequate stock, also added to the losses, the report said.
The Triveni Institute of Pharmacy, set up in Thrissur, for about Rs.12 crore without government recognition or financial aid, failed to take off as expected. This amounted to duplication of the functions of the Cooperative Academy for Professional Education, the paper said.
A loan of Rs.25 crore taken from the Thrissur District Cooperative Bank for setting up a high-security printing press was diverted as working fund at the head office and the loan had not been repaid, it said.
White paper prepared by Consumerfed MD
Accumulated losses put at Rs.16,023.73 lakh in 2013-14
Report cites ‘inept management, mounting losses’
