Agricultural Cooperatives: can improve livelihood security of rural poor

摘要

The Cooperative movement in India is one of the largest movements in the world, with a legacy spanning over a century. The Cooperative movement was introduced in the country primarily to free the farmers from the clutches of money lenders. Thus the first Cooperative Credit Societies Act of 1904 was passed with a focus on freedom for farmers from debt burden. The thrust was to establish primary credit societies. Under the Government of India Act of 1935, Cooperatives were categorised under the provincial subject and the Multi-unit Cooperative Societies Act was enacted in 1942. Cooperative was taken as the State subject in the Constitution of India and it assumed greater importance for economic progress, after independence.