Rajya Sabha passed the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2023, on Tuesday as INDIA members from the Opposition parties walked away.
The Opposition has been demanding a discussion on the Manipur ethnic violence since the monsoon began on July 20. Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankar said he has given a ruling for a short-duration discussion on the issue but the Opposition has been insisting the debate under a different rule. They have demanded that the Prime Minister make a statement in the House.
Catch all the news from Parliament Monsoon proceedings from August 1, 2023.
Minister of State Cooperation B.L. Verma moved the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2023, for consideration and passage in Rajya Sabha.
The Bill, which had been approved by Lok Sabha on July 25, 2023, was passed in Rajya Sabha by voice vote.
While replying to queries on the Bill, Mr. Verma said that the Bill provides norms for appointing employees, ensuring no nepotism practices exist.
Noting that there is a limit for the private sector when it comes to employment generation, he said that the cooperative sector can spur jobs as the government is strengthening the cooperatives, by expanding their sphere of work into areas like LPG and petrol pump dealerships.
The Bill seeks to establish a ‘Cooperative Election Authority’ with a view to introducing electoral reforms in the cooperative sector.
There are about 8.6 lakh cooperatives in the country, out of which active Primary Agricultural Cooperatives (PACs) are around 63,000.
