Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru

Mangaluru, Jun 30: A Special Cooperative Week was inaugurated in Mangaluru on Monday to commemorate the completion of five years of the Ministry of Cooperation under the union government.

The programme is being jointly organised by the Karnataka State Cooperative Federation, Karnataka State Cooperative Marketing Federation, South Canara District Central Cooperative (SCDCC) Bank, Dakshina Kannada District Cooperative Union, and the District Cooperative Department.

The inaugural programme was held at the SCDCC Bank auditorium in Mangaluru.

Inaugurating the event, SCDCC Bank president and Sahakara Ratna awardee Dr M N Rajendra Kumar said that the cooperative movement transcends political affiliations. "We have no political party; the cooperative movement itself is our party. We firmly believe that the nation's development is possible through the cooperative movement," he said.

Highlighting the strength of the sector, he said Karnataka has over 47,000 cooperative societies. Unlike commercial banks, which often overlook the needs of common people, cooperative banks have provided greater access to financial services for the poor and ordinary citizens. He stressed that the country's progress can be achieved through a stronger cooperative sector and called upon everyone to work together for national development.

Presiding over the programme, Mangaluru South MLA D Vedavyas Kamath lauded Dr Rajendra Kumar for bringing about significant reforms in the cooperative sector in the undivided Dakshina Kannada district. He said cooperative societies have played a vital role in bringing women into the mainstream and urged women to continue making use of the various schemes offered through the cooperative movement.

Dakshina Kannada Cooperative Milk Producers' Union president Raviraj Hegde, who was the chief guest, said cooperative societies have evolved beyond being mere lending institutions and are now emerging as multi-purpose organisations offering a wide range of services.

Among those present were Karnataka State Cooperative Federation director Jayakar Shetty B Indrali, deputy registrar of Cooperative Societies H N Ramesh, Deviprasad Shetty Belapu, Dakshina Kannada District Cooperative Union chief executive officer S V Hiremath, SCDCC Bank vice-president Vinay Kumar Surinje, CEO Gopalakrishna Bhat, and others.

District Cooperative Union president Shashikumar Rai Balyottu delivered the welcome address and introductory remarks. The programme began with the hoisting of the cooperative flag.