The government has outlined a series of measures to strengthen governance, transparency and digital integration in the cooperative sector, including regulatory action against errant multi state cooperative credit societies, expansion of the National Cooperative Database and progress in seed distribution initiatives through Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited.
Multi State Cooperative Societies registered under the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act 2002 function as autonomous cooperative organisations accountable to their members and governed by the provisions of the Act, related rules and their approved bye laws. The governance structure defines the powers of members, the board of directors, the general body and the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies.
Under Section 49 of the Act, the board of a society is responsible for business decisions such as admission of members, acceptance of deposits and refund to depositors. Day to day management of a society is handled by the chief executive under the provisions of Section 52 of the Act.
Following multiple complaints received against several cooperative credit societies, the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies requested the Registrar of Cooperative Societies of the Government of Maharashtra to conduct inspections under Section 108 of the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act.
The societies inspected included Jijau Maa Saheb Multi State Cooperative Credit Society Limited, Dnyanaradha Multi State Cooperative Credit Society Limited, Shubh Kalyan Multi State Cooperative Credit Society Limited, Shri Sairam Urban Multistate Cooperative Credit Society Limited and Rajasthani Multi State Cooperative Credit Society Limited.
Based on inspection reports, notices were issued to these societies seeking explanations before initiating the winding up process under the Act. As no satisfactory responses were received, winding up orders were issued under Section 86 of the Act and liquidators were appointed under Section 89.
Under Section 90 of the Act and relevant rules, the appointed liquidators are responsible for liquidating the assets of the societies and ensuring repayment to investors and members through a time bound process.
Alongside regulatory measures, the Ministry of Cooperation has been advancing digital infrastructure for the cooperative sector through the National Cooperative Database. The portal was launched on 8 March 2024 and provides a unified digital platform containing data on more than 8.4 lakh cooperatives across the country, representing about 31 crore members across 30 sectors.
The database includes detailed information on location, membership, economic activities, infrastructure, financial performance and audit status of cooperative societies. It has been developed in three phases with support from states and union territories and is available for public access through the Ministry of Cooperation portal.
To enhance data accuracy and interoperability, the National Cooperative Database is integrated with several government digital platforms including the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendras database of the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, the Common Service Centres database of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samruddhi Kendras database of the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, the Udyam portal of the Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises and the Computerization of PACS portal.
The database is also being linked with the portals of Registrars of Cooperative Societies across states and union territories through application programming interfaces to enable automatic updates and synchronization of cooperative data.
As of 1 March 2026, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Mizoram and Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu have completed integration with the National Cooperative Database.
The database is expected to support policy makers and state governments in identifying gaps in the geographical distribution of cooperatives and improving the performance of societies in areas where the cooperative network remains weak.
Using the National Cooperative Database, the government introduced the Cooperative Ranking Framework on 24 January 2025. The framework allows state and union territory registrars to rank cooperative societies across 12 major sectors at the state, district and block levels to promote transparency, reliability and competitiveness.
In the agriculture sector, Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited continues to expand its activities through cooperative networks. Although the organisation does not have a formal branch office in Bihar, it conducts seed production and distribution through member cooperative societies in the state.
So far, 3,418 cooperative societies in Bihar have become members of Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited. During the current financial year, quality and affordable seeds were supplied to 19,956 farmers in the state.
In addition, 279 farmers covering an area of 2,663 hectares have been engaged in seed production under the organisation during the Rabi 2025 to 2026 season. Seeds produced by these farmers are procured at remunerative rates, either at the Minimum Support Price plus a 10 percent bonus or at the rate offered by the State Seed Corporation, whichever is higher.
The measures reflect the government’s broader strategy to strengthen cooperative institutions through improved oversight, digital integration and expanded agricultural support systems.
