the goan I network
PANAJI
The co-operative sector which plays a significant role in Goa’s local economy, particularly agriculture, housing and retail banking sectors, is reeling under a major crisis with one big co-operative institution after another a victim to mismanagement at the top.
On Friday, the State government’s Registrar of Co-operative Societies Sanjiv Gadkar, through a quasi-judicial order disqualified the entire Board of Directors of the Goa State Milk Producers Union Ltd, and appointed a top bureaucrat as its administrator.
Gadkar had cited mismanagement and violation of standard procedure by the BoD in purchase of machinery and recruitment of staff, for his decision. The apex dairy co-operative based in Ponda owns the popular brand ‘Goa Dairy’ and for several months was plagued by acrimonious mud-slinging among the directors and rival factions of share-holders.
Also in the news for the wrong reasons is the Mapusa Urban Co-operative Bank of Goa Ltd, which recently was slapped with an embargo by the Reserve Bank of India virtually halting all its retail banking operations badly affecting its depositors who have been blocked from accessing their own funds.
The State’s apex Co-operative Bank too is in a state of disarray and the State government had in 2017 refrained from holding elections and opted to appoint a ‘committee of administrators’ to manage the bank following its poor capital adequacy ratio (CAR).
The Goa State Co-operative Bank Ltd, which has 70 branches and a 600-plus workforce till date continues to be managed by the ‘committee of administrators’ and there is no sign of normalcy returning anytime soon.
The action of the State government followed a directive by the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar to the bank’s Board of Directors to resign in the wake of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) coming out with a scathing report on its financial health.
Another big player in the State’s co-operative banking sector, The Goa Urban Co-operative Bank Ltd too is in turmoil at the top management level. The dispute over the State government appointing two directors to fill vacancies, days after elections to the Bank’s BoD produced politically unpalatable results is now set to land in the Supreme Court after the Bombay High Court struck down the appointments.
The High Court also directed the Registrar of Co-operative Societies to initiate the election process to fill these two vacancies but the State government has decided to instead approach the Supreme Court and challenge the order further prolonging the wait for a return of democratic governance of the bank.
In more trouble to the Co-operative sector, the government has initiated liquidation proceedings of the Vasco Urban Co-op. Credit Society Ltd. In a recent order, the Registrar of Co-operative Societies appointed the Goa State Co-operative Bank as the ‘liquidator’.
In less than a year of getting elected in 2014, the BoD of the Vasco Urban Co-op Credit Society Ltd, quit office forcing the Registrar to appoint a committee of administrators to manage the Society in 2015. This committee too failed to turn it around, forcing the liquidation process.
The Housing sector where co-operative societies managing apartment buildings is the norm, instances of unhealthy management practices and irregularites are aplenty. Officials of the Co-operation department said lack of awareness of rules for the conduct of the affairs of such housing co-operative societies is the prime reason for the crisis.
