'Co-operative – As It Stands Today'

Co-operation is an instrument of economic development of the disadvantaged areas. The non-exploitative character of co-operatives voluntary nature of their membership, the principle of one-man vote, decentralised decision-making and self-imposed curbs on profit eminently qualified them as an instrument of development combining the advantages of private ownership with public good. It is a process of mutual help on the democratic principle. Co-operation has been known and practised in this country since time immemorial. So, co-operation is not, in any way, new to India.

Co-operation is vital to the achievement of common goals in any society. Co-operation refers to the action of working together. The spirit of co-operation rose as far back as our early ancestors when they shared hunting, fishing, and farming practices to help each other survive. Co-operation is essential in furthering development in any field as it enables collective action toward positive outcomes that benefit many. "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much," as the widely used quote by American Writer and Educator Helen Keller.

In ancient India, it took four principal forms- Kula, Grama, Shreni and Jati. Historically speaking, Kula was the first form of co-operative activity that emerged in Indian society. It was both a political and socio-economic organisation in which kinsmen, friends and relatives worked co-operatively to promote their economic, social and political interests. With the expansion and stabilisation of society, the aspects of economic and social co-operations gradually narrowed to the limits of joint family which has survived to the present day.

In the present era, the idea of co-operative enterprise took concrete shape for the first time in India in 1904. Co-operation was considered as a measure to solve the problem of rural indebtedness. Accordingly, the Co-operative Credit Societies Act was passed on 25th March 1904. The Act provided the conditions for formation of Credit Societies only.

From 1904 to till date we may divide the history of the co-operative movements into following heads: Early Stage of Development, Period of Hurried Expansion, Period of Unplanned Expansion, Period of Consolidation and Reorganisation, Period of Recovery, and Period of Planned Developments.

Now on the eve of Co-operative week if we discuss the Entrepreneurship Development and Strengthening Public Private ate Co-operative Partnership, we can clearly observe that adequate, sustainable, and reliable infrastructure is critical for stimulating the economic growth or at least keeping pace with current growth rates, offering new economic opportunities, facilitating investment in human capital, and achieving sustainable development goals thereby extending a nation's global reach and it should be easily achieved through introduction of the Public-private Co-operative Models. The aim should be to establish joint enterprises to which the member delegates contribute their functions accordingly. It should be a long-term, regulated co-operation between the different sectors for the efficient fulfilment of public tasks. It should be the realisation of economic advantage and it may help to achieve efficiency gains and may mitigate the additional cost of private finance, and thus relieve state budgets, which is especially important in countries operating under tight budgets.

At the end, we may say that the greater economic efficiency of the co-operative principle is one of the deepest causes of their triumphant and astonishing growth in the face of every obstacle.