40 new schemes will revolutionize cooperative sector in HP: Ministry

Aiming to revolutionize the cooperative sector of the state, about 40 new schemes have been initiated in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Cooperation, an official said on Saturday.

The Department of Cooperation has commissioned various new initiatives for Primary Agriculture Credit Societies (PACS) of the state, Secretary (Cooperation) C Palrasu said.

The major initiatives include PACS as Jan Aushadhi Kendras, wherein generic medicines will be made available to the rural population at cheap rates. Almost 50 PACS have applied to get Jan Aushadhi Kendra in the state.

In PACS as a common service centre scheme, the societies will function as Lok Mitra kendras, that will help the rural population in getting various kinds of certificates timely and cheaply at their doorstep. More than 80 societies are now functioning as common service centres in the state, a statement issued here said.

Recently LPG and petrol pump retail licences have also been opened for PACS, he said and added that day-to-day working of PACS would be computerized in two months. He said that about 1,300 societies were working as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samridhi Kendra in the state.