The cooperative sector and local bodies will collaborate on activities aimed at the progress of the State's rural areas, Minister for Cooperation V.N. Vasavan has said.
The Minister was speaking after inaugurating a deposit mobilisation drive launched by the cooperative sector institutions.
As part of the efforts to bolster the rural economy, cooperative institutions would support value-addition and marketing initiatives in the farm sector, Mr. Vasavan said.
The State's cooperative sector had a robust foundation that cannot be easily shaken, he said.
Mechanisms had been introduced to ensure transparency in the operations of the sector. Isolated incidents were blown out of proportion to tarnish the sector. But cooperators had successfully overcome such attempts, he said.
The Minister also recalled the role played by cooperative institutions in helping the State tackle the crises triggered by the floods and the COVID-19 pandemic. The sector contributed ₹236 crore to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund.
The deposit campaign, which would be on till March 31, aimed to mobilise ₹6,000 crore, Mr. Vasavan said. He also accepted the first deposits. Minister for Transport Antony Raju presided. V. Joy, MLA, Mini Antony, secretary, Cooperation department, Registrar of Cooperative Societies P.B. Nooh, and Kerala State Cooperative Union chairman Koliakode Krishnan Nair spoke.
