Mumbai, May 12 (IANS) Former Union Minister Sharad Pawar on Monday appealed to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to appoint a commission to study the present status of sugar cooperatives in the state and the problems faced by them.
Speaking at a symposium on the occasion of International Cooperative Day organised by the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank, Sharad Pawar said, “Earlier, there were 80 per cent cooperative sugar factories and 20 per cent private factories, now 50 per cent have become private sugar factories.”
“The government needs to appoint a commission to hold a comprehensive study on the problems faced by the cooperative sugar factories and make recommendations in this regard,” the senior Pawar said.
Sharad Pawar said that during the Deccan Uprising, the British understood the suffering of the farmers and they came up with solutions. At that time, farmers had to take loans from moneylenders and traders, but that stopped and they started getting loans from cooperatives.
“Earlier, there was no sugar factory, there was a jaggery business. A trader used to make jaggery and there was pressure on that market, but this was changed and the MSC Bank was established as an alternative to provide funds to the farmers,” he added.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who shared the dais with his estranged uncle Sharad Pawar, called upon the chief minister to take stern action against those who after doing illegal things in the cooperative sector join the government and bring stay on actions.
“Today there are radical changes taking place in the cooperative sector. Many people feel that some changes should still be made. When the Board of Directors does the work of putting the organisation in trouble, then the recovery of losses should be made from them. However, it does not happen as such matters get a stay. In such a situation the Board of Directors sees who is in power and they go to the party represented by the cooperation minister. This should be stopped somewhere,” said Deputy CM Pawar.
He drew the chief minister’s attention saying that if people try to cover up their wrongdoings by joining the ruling party, then it needs to be stopped.
“Even if they are allowed to join the ruling party, action should be taken against them for their wrongdoings. This will send a strong signal that the government will not allow such people to get away,” he remarked and added that those who do good work should be rewarded.
He said that the sector is undergoing a change. “From milk to sugar cooperatives, from credit societies to urban banks and from savings groups to processing industries, the contribution of cooperatives is huge. Today, there are 5.81 lakh members of 2.5 lakh cooperative institutions in Maharashtra.
“This strength will increase further. In this regard, the Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah has decided that no matter what happens, the number of cooperatives will have to increase. Against this backdrop, we will see radical changes in the state’s sector,” he added.
–IANS
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