Changes in rules governing cooperative societies on the cards!
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Changes in rules governing cooperative societies on the cards!

Delhi government listens to cooperative societies which have been requesting for amendment of the rules, such as those regarding functioning of CGHS and audit system.

Changes in rules governing cooperative societies on the cards! Picture used for representative purpose only

Following a series of requests from several cooperative societies, the Delhi government has agreed to bring some amendments on the existing rules under which these societies function.

The government has formed a six-member review panel consisting of three members from cooperative societies and three from the registrar office of the state government. According to sources, the panel has been asked to hold discussions with members of cooperative societies and submit its report to the government within 90 days.

The members of the panel are Indushekhar Mishra (Special RCS), Naveen Katariya (DRCS), GS Agrawal (Retd DRCS officer), PM Sharma (general secretary of Delhi cooperative union Ltd), Suresh Bindal (president of Federation of IP Extension CGHS) and SK Sharma (secretary of TC society Ltd).

The panel will be gathering suggestions from several cooperative organisations in the city. Subsequently, reports will be tabled before the cabinet committee for deliberation. A final report will be brought before the Delhi Assembly for approval and a new cooperative society act will come into force after the Delhi Assembly clears the bill. The first meeting of the panel is scheduled to be held on March 7 at the registrar office of Delhi.

Cooperative group housing societies, cooperative banks and many other cooperative organisations are registered with the registrar of the cooperative societies under the Delhi Co-operative Societies Rules 2007 and they function under the Cooperative Act 2013.

Bindal told City Spidey that there was an urgent need to bring changes in the existing rules. He said, “Every fourth person in the city is associated with a cooperative society. Even in villages, cooperative societies are active for empowerment of farmers. Our focus is to make the cooperative society act transparent, accountable to beneficiaries, and promote better cooperation between the government and cooperative society members.”

“Many rules are not in sync with the times. There are loopholes in the rules regarding consumer society, labour society and registrar of CGHS, which need to be addressed. We also need changes in rules about functioning of CGHS and the audit system. We do not need registrar’s control over the society’s audit system,” he added.

City Spidey also learned that there is a difference of opinion among some cooperative society members on whether the cooperative societies should come under the ambit of Right to Information Act.

“Not only the audit system but the entire functioning of cooperative group housing societies must be under the supervision of the registrar office. To sustain the transparency in housing societies, they should remain under the RTI Act,” said Purusottam Das Bhatt, president of United India Apartments, a cooperative group housing society in Mayur Vihar Phase I Extension.