MADURAI: The primary agricultural cooperative society at Melavalavu, which is run by a single-staff member, has remained closed for the past eight months, as the secretary has retired and a replacement has not been appointed yet. Farmers said they are not able to access any credit schemes from the society and urged the government to appoint staff at the earliest.
According to sources, the Melavalavu primary agriculture cooperative society, located in the Kottampatti block in Melur has 1,200 members. The society handles transactions valued between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh every month. Speaking to TNIE, S. Malaisamy, a farmer, expressed his frustration over the closure of agriculture society.
"Closure of the society affects all farmers in the region. The society has 1,200 active members, primarily farmers, and is situated in an area with extensive paddy fields spanning several acres. Farmers cultivate using water from the Periyar irrigation scheme, and are dependent on the society for loans and fertilizers.
Several farmers lodged numerous complaints to the district cooperative department officials about the society's closure during the last eight months, but no action has been taken yet."
AM Asiriyathevan, honorary secretary of the TN Cooperative Societies Workers Association (Madurai), stated this is a single-staff society where the secretary manages the affairs. "This is the problem in such societies, and several societies are in a similar situation across the Madurai district. In this particular case, the secretary retired 10 months ago, and no replacement had been appointed.
When the issue was brought to attention of officials a few weeks later, the Cooperation Department deputed the secretary of Ettimangalam Primary Agriculture Society to take care of the accounts. However, this person is already burdened with responsibilities in his own society, which deals with high-value transactions amounting to Rs 7 crore. Given that the Melavaluv Agriculture Cooperative Society handles a lower volume of transactions, this secretary has not been consistently available there."
Joint registrar of the cooperative department (Madurai), S Sathish Kumar said the Melavalavu society is not in a financially sound position. Speaking to TNIE, he said,"We are aware of the issue. The financial situation of the society is not strong, but it should be running. To handle the situation, we deputed staff from another place on additional-charge basis, but he is not available on a regular basis. A new clerk will be appointed within a few days to ensure the society remains operational."