Punjab to amend cooperatives law
The provincial government has decided to introduce amendments to the Punjab Cooperative Societies Act, 1925 to bring it into harmony with the modern-day requirements.
To introduce new amendments and review performance of the Cooperatives Department, a meeting was held under the chair of Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar in the provincial capital on Saturday.
The participants of the meeting were given a detailed briefing on the 24 proposed amendments being introduced almost after a century.
The meeting approved computerization of land records of the Cooperatives Department Housing Societies.
It also gave in principle approval to fill necessary vacant posts in the Punjab Provincial Cooperative Bank.
Buzdar directed the department to launch an interest-free tractor scheme for the Barani areas besides ensuring loans to the farmers on a priority basis for promotion of livestock.
He also instructed the department to chalk out a workable plan on the use of its commercial land and also reviewed proposal of setting up a commercial building/parking plaza on 4-kanal of land at Regal Chowk besides using the retrieved land of the Cooperatives Department for tourism purposes.
The chief minister was told that 36 properties of the Cooperatives Department worth Rs60 billion had been retrieved.
The department would offer 112 of its valuable properties for their better use.
The participants of the meeting were told that 21 Farm Services Centres were also being reopened in Punjab for the convenience of farmers, and Guzara Forest Cooperative Scheme would be reactivated in Murree, Kahuta and Kotli Sattian.
The meeting was also told that that the department had recovered 98.7% of the loans amounting to Rs1.53 billion so far.
Geo-tagging of 232 housing societies was underway.
A biometric system was being installed in the Cooperatives Department Housing Societies for prevention of fraud.
A Transaction Monitoring System would also be implemented in the Punjab Provincial Cooperative Bank.
Punjab Law Minister Raja Muhammad Basharat, principal secretary to the CM, the secretary of cooperatives and other officials concerned were also present on the occasion.
The Punjab government had decided in 2019 to generate resources from the local sources and to revamp the Punjab Cooperatives Department by formulating a new lease policy for assets and properties of the department.
Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar had given approval for the formulation of the new policy at a meeting in which he had underscored the need to make the Cooperatives Department more effective and vibrant.
The chief minister had then directed that strict legal action be taken immediately against the people who had occupied assets and properties of the Cooperatives Department.
He had ordered indiscriminate action to retrieve department’s assets and properties from illegal occupants.
The government would provide all-out support to the department for this operation, he had maintained.
He had also directed the authorities to make physical verification of assets and properties of the department.
Buzdar had also given his approval to launching of tractors scheme for arid districts of Punjab. He had said a coordinated policy should be worked out to start work on this scheme.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government would make every possible effort for the welfare of farmers, he had added.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 23rd, 2022.