BHUBANESWAR: Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) will soon offer core banking facilities like real-time gross settlement (RTGS), national electronic fund transfer (NEFT) and micro ATM provisions.
Computerisation of more than 95 per cent of the 2,710 PACS in 30 districts of the state has been completed and data migrated to common banking software (CBS). The NEFT/RTGS service will enable inter-bank electronic fund transfer services for PACS.
The PACS in the state are a part of around 65,000 functional primary agricultural cooperative societies across the country that will be integrated online by the end of August this year to diversify their businesses and undertake multiple services. Godowns set up in PACS will provide modernised tools for farmers.
Sources said, the integration of the wings and roots of the PACS is in testing phase and is scheduled to be over by May 31. Of the 2,622 PACS that have been computerised, 110 have been successfully synced online and the remaining will be synced after the completion of the integration process.
The registrar of Cooperative Societies has sought immediate linking of day-end processes of PACS with their respective central cooperative banks. As the accounts of farmers are in books of PACS, banks have to put in place a system where such accounts can be migrated to the core banking system.
General manager of Odisha State Cooperative Bank (OSCB) Prabodh Kumar Mishra said all the computerised PACS have been linked to their respective district cooperative bank’s core banking system and exchanging data in real-time.
“One-time tool usage has been permitted for a period of 10 days from May 15 to 25 for specific operational needs to ensure that the linking of day end processes of PACS is completed before the deadline. Computerisation of the remaining PACS will be completed and banking facilities like NEFT/RTGS made available soon,” he said.