The Gazetteers Department

THE CO-OPERATIVE DEPARTMENT AT THE DISTRICT LEVEL is headed by the Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Kolhapur. Many of the powers of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies under the Bombay Co-operative Societies Act (VII of 1925) and the rules under it have been delegated to him. There are two District Co-operative Officers, one is for the general organisation work and the other is for the development schemes under the Second Five-Year Plan. The District Co-operative Officer who is appointed for the development work under the Second Five-Year Plan is designated as Additional District Co-operative Officer.

The Co-operative Officer has to attend to organisation work of all types of societies, inspections of the supervising unions and federal societies, urban banks, and salary earners' societies, control over supervisors, etc. The Additional District Cooperative Officer has to attend to the preparation of plans and budgets under the Second Five-Year Plan, and see that the work is executed according to the plans prepared. He has to attend to the development work of housing societies and other development works such as formation of large size multipurpose societies, submission of proposals for construction of godowns of multi-purpose societies and purchase and sale societies, i.e., all work relating to development and schemes under the Second Five-Year Plan.

The Assistant District Co-operative Officer has to look after the work relating to the registration of the credit and multipurpose societies, inspection of the same, scrutiny of the diaries and inspection memoes of the Supervisors' work relating to the enquiries into the complaints of members.

There is an Assistant District Co-operative Officer to look after incomplete co-operative lift irrigation. Originally there was only one post for this work but recently one more post of Assistant District Co-operative Officer for incomplete schemes and one post of mechanical supervisor have been created. The Assistant District Co-operative Officer for Lift Irrigation schemes attends to the work of co-operative lift irrigation societies, co-operative dam construction societies, co-operative farming societies, and the work of the four National Extensive Service Blocks. He attends to inspection, organisation and other work in relation to these societies, and National Extension Service Blocks. Since the appointment of the Assistant District Co-operative Officer for incomplete works the work relating to the co-operative lift irrigation and dam construction societies has been transferred to him and he looks to the work of these societies. The Mechanical Supervisor is expected to give technical guidance to the societies and issue progress certificates of the work done by the co-operative lift irrigation societies.

Audit.

There is a Special Auditor attached to Assistant Registrar's Office who exercise control over the audit staff. He has to see that the work done by the auditor and sub-auditors is done according to the programmes chalked out and approved by the department. He has to scrutinise the diaries and audit memoes submitted by the auditors and sub-auditors, attend to the work relating to misappropriation and enquiry cases. He is also required to submit audit progress reports, audit fee recovery and supervision fee recovery statements.

There are five auditors and eleven sub-auditors. Of the five auditors, one is meant for the audits of forest labourers' societies. One is meant for the audit of weavers' societies and the remaining three are meant for the audit of the co-operative societies other than agricultural credit and multi-purpose societies. The sub-auditors are expected to take up the audits of agricultural credit and multi-purpose societies.

Other staff.

Other staff.-There is a Statistical Assistant and also an Accountant. The Statistical Assistant is expected to collect statistical data and submit reports required by the Registrar. He looks after submission of statistical reports under the Second Five-Year Plan. He is also expected to make surveys and collect statistical data as directed by the Statistician. The Accountant does the work relating to the loan accounts and recovery of the loan instalments in time. He has also to attend to the preparation of budgets and send expenditure statements.

There are more officers who look to the respective section of the co-operative movement in this district as indicated below:-

(1) Special Auditor, Co-operative Societies, (2) Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Sugar Factories, (3) Assistant Director of Small Scale Industries and Assistant Registrar for Industrial Co-operatives and Village Industries, (4) Special Auditor for Co-operative Sugar Factories, (5) Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Societies for Paddy Pilot Schemes, (6) Marketing Inspector.

Paddy Cultivation.

Recently the district has been brought under the Paddy Cultivation Scheme sponsored by Government through Agricultural and Forest department. The work is carried out by the Assistant Registrar, Paddy Cultivation Scheme, who is stationed at Kolhapur. The duties of the Assistant Registrar for Paddy Cultivation Scheme consists of organisation and establishment of societies undertaking paddy cultivation on the Japanese method and making available loans to them for the purpose.

Regulated Markets.

The Kolhapur Market which was regulated under the provisions of the Kolhapur Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1945, for the purchase and sale of gul and groundnut was allowed to continue as a Regulated market under the Bombay Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1939 on the merger of the Kolhapur State in Bombay. In addition, there is a regulated market at Gadhingalaj which is regulated under the Bombay Agricultural Produce Markets Act for the purchase and sale of gul, groundnut, chillies, jowar and bajri.

Sarvodaya Centre.

The State Government have adopted a scheme known as the ''Sarvodaya" scheme, the aim of which is to bring about all-round intensive development, social, educational and economical, of selected compact blocks of backward villages (from 30 to 45) in each district, through a constructive programme which was foremost in the objectives of Mahatma Gandhi. This scheme aims at development of backward areas by means of measures relating to (1) education, (2) agricultural development, (3) cottage industries and industries subsidiary to agriculture, (4) health, water supply and conservancy, and (5) social and cultural development including prohibition.

One such Sarvodaya centre has been opened at Ajra mahal covering over 49 villages. The chief executive authority in the formulation and implementation of the scheme is a Sanchalak. He is assisted by a committee of non-officials known as the Sarvodaya Area Committee. Such a committee has been established for the Ajra Mahal Centre. Every year, a programme for the development of the area is formulated by the Sanchalak which is considered by the State Sarvodaya Committee before it is finally sanctioned by Government. During the financial year 1956-57, grants totalling Rs. 69,420 have been sanctioned for the Ajra Mahal Centre.

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