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A brief history of the times

Cooperatives have a long tradition and history of developing rural economic infrastructure. The first co-operative movement in England began in the early nineteenth century. In 1821, Robert Wayne founded a co-operative village in and around New Lanark, England, organizing workers. By collecting their own savings through cooperatives, the workers become novices in improving their fortunes. Robert Wayne's cooperative activities were quite successful in the first two decades. Later, due to mismanagement, it came to a standstill in the forties. Robert Owen has been called the "Father of Modern Cooperatives" because he laid the foundations for modern cooperatives.


            In fact, the triumph of the modern cooperative movement began on 14 August 1844 in a small town called Rochdale, near Manchester, England. The Rochdale Pioneers Equitable Cooperative Society (Rochdale Pioneers Equitable Cooperative Society) was founded by only 26 (twenty-eight) intelligent workers of Rochdale with a vow of self-reliance and self-reliance.


          Rochdale was succeeded in August 1895 by the successful formation of an international organization called the International Cooperative Alliance. The international organization cooperates extensively with the cooperatives. Later, in the Spanish province of Basque, a cooperative called the Mandragan Cooperative Corporation was established, one of the most successful examples of cooperatives to date.


                 The first co-operative movement in the Indian sub-continent began in the early twentieth century. At that time about 90 percent of the people lived in villages. Agriculture was the only means of livelihood for the people.


            In 175 peasant revolts took place in different parts of South India. At the root of this revolt was the lack of agricultural credit, the compounded high interest rates on bank loans, and the growing poverty of the peasantry. In this context, according to the recommendation of the Indian Feminine Commission in 1901 and the recommendation of a three member committee (Lord Edward, Sir Nicholson and Duper Knicks) formed by the then Viceroy Lord Curzon, the then Governor General of British India Lord Curzon in 1904 Cooperative Credit Societies Act-1904) and the then Government of India re-enacted the Cooperative Societies Act-1912. The law includes provisions for the formation of credit and non-credit co-operative societies and for the formation of all types of co-operative societies with finite and unlimited liability. Moreover, the law provides for the formation of central and provincial apex bodies or banks. As a result, various types of co-operative societies with finite and unlimited liability in agriculture and non-agriculture started to be formed all over the country.


            The 'Imperial Co-operative in India' was formed under the leadership of Sir Edward McLagan to identify the problems of the co-operatives in India and come up with solutions. In 1915 the McLaughlin Committee submitted a recommendation. The report of this committee is termed as the 'Bible of Cooperatives' for India.


            Under the 1912 Act, the establishment of the Provincial Cooperative Bank began in 1917 with the formation of the Bengal Provincial Co-operative Federation. In 1922 it was renamed as 'Bengal Provincial Bank'.


            The then Government of India made co-operatives a provincial issue in 1919. A Minister for Cooperative Affairs was also appointed under the Provincial Government. However, even then the activities of the cooperative were conducted in accordance with the 1912 Salel Cooperative Societies Act.


            In the twenties, jute buying and selling cooperatives achieved a remarkable success. Through these ‘Sales and Supplies Committees’ and ‘Agricultural Marketing Committees’ play a leading role in the jute business. The Bengal Co-operative Wholesale Society, the central association of these, achieved unprecedented success in the jute business from 1926 to 1929.


           In order to revive the cooperative movement, the provincial government issued the Bengal Cooperative Societies Act, 1940. In 1942, 'Cooperative Rules-1942' was published along with the analysis of the said law. But with the outbreak of World War II, commodity prices in the country skyrocketed. In 1943 there was a great famine in the whole province. On the other hand, in 1945, anti-British movement spread across the country. Hindu-Muslim riots started everywhere. As a result, the cooperative movement faced a great catastrophe.


            After the partition of the country in 1947, the cooperative movement came to a standstill. Although there were more than 26,000 co-operative societies in East Pakistan at that time, their condition was deplorable. Most of these associations were dissolved within the next few years.


         The East Pakistan Provincial Cooperative Bank was established in 1947 as a joint venture between the government and the cooperatives. Through this the government took initiative to resume the credit activities of the cooperative societies. Instead of rural societies, one union multipurpose cooperative society was formed in each union. Fertilizers, seeds, pesticides and diesel were then supplied to the farmers through these union multipurpose cooperative societies. Societies used to motivate the people to use chemical fertilizers. Societies play an important role in the introduction of modern scientific farming methods.


            In the 1950s, the East Pakistan Co-operative Jute Marketing Society and its affiliated Jute Purchasing Association achieved unexpected success in the jute business. Jute is exported abroad