COIMBATORE: Similar to nationalised banks, the cooperative banks in the State have set a target of disbursing Rs 12,000 crore agricultural credit by March 2023, said Minister for Cooperation I Periyasamy on Saturday. He also added that over 6,000 vacancies will be filled in the cooperative department soon.
The minister was speaking at the All India Cooperative Week celebration in Coimbatore. He said, "The cooperative department has set a target of disbursing 12,000 crore agriculture credit by March next year and we have disbursed Rs 7,300 crore agriculture loans so far this year. Likewise, we disbursed 10,292 crore last year." Minister also said that he has told the CM that over 6000 vacancies should be filled in the cooperative department and based on which CM has issued an order as part of recruiting. 'We will appoint qualified people soon," he said.
He also said that as part of implementing the DMK government's electoral promise, authorities have started giving receipts to the women self-help group members for waving Rs 5,000 crore worth of gold loans. "Compared to last year, we have also decided to disburse more loans to the women's self-help groups this year. The woman self-help group scheme was initiated by the then CM Kalaignar for helping women do business without depending on others," he added.
Everyone in the Cooperative department is feeling proud due to the ongoing progress within the department. Moreover, unlike other states, all 23 central cooperative societies are running profitably. We will give salary increments to those working in cooperative societies as well as Primary Agriculture cooperative banks (PACB), he said adding that all 4451cooperative societies in the State should try to be more profitable.
Further, he informed that out of 33,000 ration shops (full-time and part-time) 6,900 are functioning in rented buildings. "We are taking steps to construct buildings for these shops," he said.The minister also distributed welfare assistance worth Rs 22.20 crore to a total of 3031 beneficiaries.Speaking at the function, Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji said that the Coimbatore district administration has planned to distribute loans worth Rs 1000 crore to the members of SHG.