Executive Summary:
The Ministry of Cooperation addressed the status of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) in response to questions raised in Lok Sabha. The government approved a plan on 15.02.2023 to strengthen the cooperative movement by establishing 2 lakh new multipurpose PACS, Dairy, and Fishery Cooperative Societies nationwide. As of 30.06.2025, 22,606 new societies have been registered. Model Byelaws have been prepared to diversify PACS activities.
Key Points / Main Content:
* **Establishment of New Cooperative Societies:**
* Government approved plan on 15.02.2023 to establish 2 lakh new multipurpose PACS, Dairy, Fishery Cooperative Societies.
* Aims to cover all Panchayats/villages in the country over five years.
* Convergence of existing GOI schemes with support from NABARD, NDDB, and NFDB.
* 22,606 new PACS, Dairy, and Fishery Cooperative Societies registered as of 30.06.2025.
* 2,56,260 Gram Panchayats covered by PACS, 84,665 by Dairy, and 29,490 by Fishery Cooperative Societies.
* Jharkhand has established 45 new PACS, 208 new Dairy, and 119 new Fishery Cooperative Societies.
* No new societies registered in Sonipat, Haryana.
* **Services Provided by PACS:**
* New PACS provide credit services.
* One PACS in Deoghar offers dry storage, and one in Garhwa offers procurement, common service, and cold storage facilities.
* The newly formed societies have a total member base of 16,412 members.
* **Model Byelaws for Diversification:**
* Model Byelaws prepared to enable PACS to undertake over 25 business activities.
* Activities include dairy, fishery, warehousing, foodgrain procurement, and distributorships.
* 32 States/UTs have adopted Model Byelaws or aligned existing bylaws.
* **Implementation and Evaluation Committees:**
* Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) under the Union Minister of Cooperation.
* National Level Coordination Committee (NLCC) under the Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation.
* State Cooperative Development Committee (SCDC) under the Chief Secretary of the State.
* District Cooperative Development Committee (DCDC) under the District Collector.
* Joint Working Committee (JWC) as a subcommittee of DCDC.
* **Financial Support and Profitability:**
* 1,409 newly formed MPACS have commenced crop loan business with Rs. 3,367.28 crore sanctioned.
* States/UTs requested to facilitate additional business activities for PACS, such as Common Service Centres and Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendras.
Impact Analysis:
* **Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS):**
* Impact: Diversification of activities, increased membership, access to financial support.
* Action Required: Adopt Model Byelaws, initiate additional business activities, and participate in crop loan programs.
* **State Governments/Union Territories:**
* Impact: Responsible for facilitating the establishment and operation of new cooperative societies.
* Action Required: Adopt Model Byelaws, support additional business activities for PACS, and participate in the established committees.
* **NABARD, NDDB, NFDB:**
* Impact: Support the establishment of new cooperative societies through existing schemes.
* Action Required: Continue to provide support and resources for the development of PACS, Dairy, and Fishery Cooperative Societies.
* **Gram Panchayats/Villages:**
* Impact: Increased access to credit and other services through the establishment of new cooperative societies.
* Action Required: Engage with the new societies and utilize the services provided for development purposes.
Key Entities Referenced
Primary Agriculture Credit Societies PACS: Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) are the fundamental units in India's cooperative credit structure, providing short-term and medium-term loans to farmers.
Dairy Cooperative Societies: Organizations involved in the collection, processing, and distribution of milk and dairy products, operating on a cooperative basis.
Fisheries Cooperative Societies: Cooperative societies engaged in fishing, aquaculture, and related activities, providing support to fishermen and promoting sustainable fisheries.
Jharkhand: A state in eastern India where the status of PACS, Dairy Cooperative Societies and Fisheries Cooperative Societies is being analysed.
Sonipat, Haryana: A Lok Sabha Constituency in Haryana, where the status of PACS, Dairy Cooperative Societies and Fisheries Cooperative Societies is being analysed.
Plan for strengthening cooperative movement: A government initiative approved on 15.2.2023 to strengthen the cooperative movement in the country and extend its reach to the grassroots level.
National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development NABARD: An apex development finance institution in India that supports rural development and agriculture, including providing financial assistance to cooperative societies.
PM Matsya Sampada Yojana PMMSY: A scheme by Government of India, focused on sustainable development of fisheries sector.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF COOPERATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2642
TO BE ANSWERED ON 5th AUGUST, 2025
Status of Primary Agriculture Credit Societies
2642. Shri Satpal Brahamchari:
Shri Chandra Prakash Choudhary:
Will the Minister of COOPERATION (सहकारिता मंत्री) be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has analysed the status of setting up of Primary Agricultural Credit
Societies (PACS), Dairy Cooperative Societies or Fisheries Cooperative Societies in each
Panchayat/village of Jharkhand and Lok Sabha Constituency of Sonipat;
(b) if so, the district-wise/year-wise details of the number of societies registered, functioning so
far along with its criteria (membership, services);
(c) whether each Panchayat/village is targeted to have a multi-purpose PACS for development
purpose;
(d) if so, the progress made in the said direction at the State/district level and the number of Gram
Panchayats that are covered under the said scheme;
(e) whether model byelaws have been adopted by the State Government whereby PACS can
participate in dairy and fisheries activities such as dairy processing, fish farming, warehousing
etc.;
(f) whether any evaluation or audit has been conducted to determine the effectiveness, operational
efficiency and profitability of these committees at the village level;
(g) if so, the major findings thereof; and
(h) if not, the time by when such evaluation is likely to be carried out in future?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF COOPERATION
सहकारिता मंत्री (SHRI AMIT SHAH)
(a) to (d): The Government on 15.2.2023, approved the Plan for strengthening cooperative
movement in the country and deepening its reach up to the grassroots. The Plan entails
establishment of 2 lakh new multipurpose PACS (M-PACS), Dairy, Fishery Cooperative Societies
covering all the Panchayats/ villages in the country over a period of five years, through
convergence of various existing GOI schemes, including Dairy Infrastructure Development Fund
(DIDF), National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), PM Matsya Sampada Yojana
(PMMSY), etc, with the support of National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development
(NABARD), National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), National Fisheries Development
Board (NFDB) and State Governments.As per National Cooperative Database (NCD), a total of 22,606 new PACS, Dairy and Fishery
Cooperative Societies have been registered as on 30.6.2025 across the country since the approval
of the plan on 15.2.2023, the details of which are enclosed at Annexure-I. So far, 2,56,260 Gram
Panchayats (GPs) are covered by PACS; 84,665 GPs are covered by Dairy Cooperative Societies;
and 29,490 GPs are covered by Fishery Cooperative Societies. Of the 22,606 newly formed
societies, 45 new PACS, 208 new Dairy and 119 new Fishery Cooperative Societies have been
established in the State of Jharkhand. The district-wise/year-wise details of the same are enclosed
at Annexure-II. Further, as per NCD, apart from the Credit Services being provided by these
newly formed PACS, one PACS in Deoghar district is providing Dry Storage facility and one PACS
in Garhwa district is providing services of Procurement Centre, Common Service Centre and Cold
Storage. These newly formed PACS, Dairy & Fishery Cooperative Societies have a total member
base of 16,412 members (as per NCD).
No new PACS/ Dairy/ Fishery Cooperative Society has been registered in Sonipat, Haryana.
(e): In order to diversify the economic activities of PACS to make them multipurpose economic
entities, Model Byelaws have been prepared by the Government of India, enabling PACS to
undertake more than 25 business activities, including dairy, fishery, setting up godowns,
procurement of foodgrains, fertilizers, seeds, LPG/CNG/Petrol/Diesel distributorship, short-term
& long-term credit, custom hiring centers, Fair Price Shops (FPS), community irrigation, Common
Service Centre, etc. So far, 32 States/ UTs have adopted Model Bye-laws or their existing bye-
laws are in line with Model Bye-laws.
(f) to (h): In order to ensure effective and timely implementation of the plan, following
committees have been formed at National, State and District level:
• Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) under the chairmanship of Union Minister of
Cooperation;
• National Level Coordination Committee (NLCC) under the chairmanship of Secretary,
Ministry of Cooperation (GoI) at the National Level;
• State Cooperative Development Committee (SCDC) under the chairmanship of Chief
Secretary of the State at State Level;
• District Cooperative Development Committee (DCDC) under the chairmanship of District
Collector concerned at the District Level; and
• Joint Working Committee (JWC)- a sub-committee of DCDC.
Further, as per the information provided by NABARD, 1,409 newly formed M-PACS have
commenced crop loan business with a total of Rs. 3,367.28 crore sanctioned so far. In order to
improve the profitability of the newly formed PACS, States/ UT Governments have been requested
to facilitate them to initiate additional business activities, other than credit, such as Common
Service Centre, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendra, Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi
Kendra, etc.
******Annexure-I
State-wise details of newly registered PACS, Dairy & Fishery Cooperative Societies
(From 15.2.2023 to 30.6.2025)
Grand Districts
S.No State PACS DCS FCS Total Covered so far
1 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 1 1 11 13 3
2 Andhra Pradesh 0 891 2 893 18
3 Arunachal Pradesh 126 15 17 158 24
4 Assam 238 434 54 726 34
5 Bihar 39 3705 2 3746 38
6 Chhattisgarh 0 280 281 561 32
7 Goa 24 3 2 29 2
8 Gujarat 458 613 15 1086 33
9 Haryana 21 135 6 162 20
10 Himachal Pradesh 91 467 6 564 10
11 Jammu & Kashmir 161 1154 35 1350 20
12 Jharkhand 45 208 119 372 24
13 Karnataka 180 806 37 1023 31
14 Ladakh 3 3 1 7 2
15 Lakshadweep 0 0 7 7 1
16 Madhya Pradesh 199 605 183 987 50
17 Maharashtra 177 759 92 1028 23
18 Manipur 72 20 61 153 12
19 Meghalaya 217 13 2 232 12
20 Mizoram 41 2 2 45 9
21 Nagaland 13 2 9 24 6
22 Odisha 1534 19 25 1578 30
23 Puducherry 3 2 3 8 3
24 Punjab 0 443 34 477 23
25 Rajasthan 970 1702 9 2681 33
26 Sikkim 24 41 1 66 6
27 Tamil Nadu 29 551 24 604 37
28 Telangana 0 94 78 172 16
29 DNH & DD 5 0 1 6 2
30 Tripura 187 1 9 197 8
31 Uttar Pradesh 516 1813 337 2666 75
32 Uttarakhand 543 196 108 847 13
33 West Bengal 20 118 0 138 16
34 Chandigarh 0 0 0 0 0
35 Delhi 0 0 0 0 0
36 Kerala 0 0 0 0 0
Grand Total 5937 15096 1573 22606 666
Source: National Cooperative DatabaseAnnexure-II
District-wise/year-wise details of the number of societies registered in Jharkhand
(From 15.2.2023 to 30.6.2025)
S. No. of new societies registered in 2023 No. of new societies registered in 2024 No. of new societies registered in 2025
District
No PACS DCS FCS Total PACS DCS FCS Total PACS DCS FCS Total
1 Bokaro 0 1 4 5 0 2 5 7 0 0 2 2
2 Chatra 0 0 2 2 0 8 0 8 0 0 1 1
3 Deoghar 1 0 0 1 0 6 1 7 0 1 0 1
4 Dhanbad 10 0 3 13 0 0 4 4 0 1 0 1
5 Dumka 0 0 2 2 0 5 3 8 0 4 2 6
East
6 3 0 1 4 1 1 0 2 0 2 0 2
Singhbum
7 Garhwa 3 3 0 6 0 0 2 2 0 2 0 2
8 Giridih 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 3
9 Godda 0 2 1 3 1 9 1 11 0 0 0 0
10 Gumla 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
11 Hazaribagh 0 2 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0
12 Jamtara 0 0 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 4
13 Khunti 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
14 Koderma 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 4 4
15 Latehar 0 1 0 1 0 2 4 6 0 2 9 11
16 Lohardaga 0 14 0 14 0 7 0 7 0 0 0 0
17 Pakur 15 0 1 16 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 2
18 Palamu 0 6 4 10 0 8 2 10 0 14 4 18
19 Ramgarh 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 4 0 0 0 0
20 Ranchi 4 15 7 26 0 16 1 17 0 50 7 57
21 Sahebganj 0 11 1 12 1 4 3 8 0 0 5 5
Saraikela
22 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 3 3
Kharsawan
23 Simdega 0 0 1 1 0 1 3 4 0 0 0 0
West
24 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1
Singhbhum
Grand Total 40 55 38 133 5 70 39 114 0 83 42 125
Source: National Cooperative Database