India, March 24 -- The Government of India has issued a release:
Milk Unions, Cooperative banks, APMCs and State federations etc come under the purview of State Governments. The State Government extends financial assistance, including grants and other forms of support, to these cooperatives in accordance with their respective rules and regulations through various schemes of State. Additionally, Government of India, give benefits to cooperatives through various central sector and centrally sponsored schemes such as National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), Atmanirbharta Abhiyan, Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (Satat) Mission, Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) etc.
The applicability of the Right to Information Act, 2005 to cooperative institutions is governed by Section 2(h) of the Act, under which only those institutions which are substantially financed by the appropriate Government fall within its purview.
The Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) (Amendment) Act & Rules, 2023 have been notified on 03.08.2023 and 04.08.2023, respectively to strengthen governance, enhance transparency, increase accountability and reform electoral process, etc. in the Multi State Cooperative Societies by supplementing existing legislation and
incorporating the provisions of Ninety-seventh Constitutional Amendment. Many provisions have been introduced through the above amendment to enhance transparency in the functioning of cooperative societies, inter-alia: -
As per the provisions of Section 70 of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act,
2002, every multi-State co-operative society is required to appoint an auditor or auditors at each Annual General Meeting. Such auditors or auditing firms are to be selected from a panel approved by the Central Registrar. The auditor so appointed is required to submit the audit report to the multi-State co-operative society within six months from the closure of the financial year to which the accounts relate.
Further, as per Section 72 of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, no person
shall be qualified for appointment as an auditor of a multi-State co-operative society unless he is a Chartered Accountant within the meaning of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949.
The existing provisions of the RTI Act already cover such institutions wherever they meet the criteria of substantially financed by Government. Further, a provision under amended section 106 of Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002 (as amended in 2023) has been made to appoint Cooperative Information Officer by all multi-State cooperative societies to provide information relating to affairs and management of the society to the members of the society.
This information was given by Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Shri Amit Shah in a written reply in Lok Sabha.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
