Over 8.5 lakh cooperatives registered; 6.6 lakh functional serving 32 crore members

New Delhi, Jan 18 (IANS) The National Cooperative Database (NCD) has recorded over 8.5 lakh cooperatives, of which approximately 6.6 lakh are operational -- covering nearly 98 per cent of rural India and serving around 32 crore members across 30 sectors, official data showed on Sunday.

These institutions connect milk producers, artisans, fishers, traders, and workers to markets, while connections with women-led SHGs have integrated nearly 10 crore women into the cooperative framework.

“From nationally recognised entities such as Amul to major institutions like NABARD, KRIBHCO, and IFFCO, alongside thousands of local societies and cooperatives, these entities constitute a foundational pillar of India’s economic architecture,” said the official statement.

Notably, the government has approved a Rs 2,925.39 crore project to computerise functional Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and integrate them onto a common Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)-based national software platform.

Under the scheme, each PACS will be provided with essential hardware support, including a computer, webcam, VPN, printer, and biometric device.

To date, 59,261 PACS are actively using ERP software, compared to 47,155 PACS (as on January 2, 2025).

“Hardware delivered to 65,151 PACS, covering about 82 per cent of the expanded target of 79,630 PACS (as against 57,578 PACS covered as of January 2025). Online audits were completed in 42,730 PACS, 32,119 PACS enabled as e-PACS and 34.94 crore transactions processed through 22 ERP modules, while software is available in 14 languages,” the data further showed.

According to the National Cooperative Database 32,009 new PACS, dairy, and fishery cooperatives have been registered. At present, PACS operates in 2,55,881 Gram Panchayats (GPs), dairy cooperatives cover 87,159 GPs, and fisheries cooperatives are present in 29,964 Gram Panchayats nationwide.

Moreover, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) have been integrated with multiple central government schemes, significantly expanding their role as village-local service delivery hubs.

So far, 38,190 PACS have been upgraded into Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendras (PMKSKs) to supply agricultural inputs, while 51,836 PACS function as Common Service Centres (CSCs) delivering more than 300 e-services, the data showed.