Kolkata, Aug. 31 -- Describing the cooperative sector as the "fourth arm of governance" and a key driver of the grassroots economy, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday called for strengthening cooperatives in the state to boost employment and promote women's empowerment.
Speaking at the 35th foundation day programme of the 23,000-member North 24-Parganas Women's Cooperative Credit Society Ltd, he said the cooperative system formed an important tier of administration alongside the three conventional levels of government.
"Strengthening the cooperative sector will lead to employment generation and women's empowerment," Adhikari said.
He urged them to remain free of political bias and said it was unfortunate that the cooperative movement in West Bengal had been neglected over the past 15 years. He also mentioned Amul's Rs 600-crore investment in a curd plant at Sankrail in Howrah district. The state government has offered Amul 15-acre parcels of land each in south and north Bengal for setting up ice-cream plants, he added.
"We must ensure development of the cooperative sector in West Bengal like in several other states in the country," he said. The chief minister said that out of over 6,000 cooperative societies in the state, 2,000 are non-functioning. Elections to the State Cooperative Bank have not been held for 12 years, CM added. Adhikari, who has a long association with cooperative bodies, added: "Cooperatives constitute an alternative economy. They function as the fourth arm of governance after the Centre, state and local bodies."
Adhikari, a former chairman of the Contai Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Bank, took a dig at Mamata Banerjee, saying the previous TMC government had "only one post and the rest were lamp posts".
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.