The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has decided to revive and streamline co-operative societies throughout the province in order to provide loans to the small farmers for boosting agriculture produce as well as launch small hydel schemes, shifting tube wells to solar energy and establish women handicraft centres and other women welfare schemes at rural level.
It has also decided to announce amnesty scheme with new deadline for the past defaulters to write off mark-up in case assurance of recovery of the principal amount of the loans. It will help in recovering co-operative loans to the tune of Rs 200 million obtained and embezzled in the past regimes.
In this regard Rs one billion have been earmarked for co-operatives wherein provincial government has already released Rs 800 million to the department concerned to be given to the farmers for agriculture schemes in shape of loans. Decisions to this effect were made in a meeting chaired by KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak at CM Secretariat Peshawar. It was attended by Advisor to Chief Minister for Agriculture and Co-operatives Mohibullah Khan, MPA and Chairman Standing Committee Arbab Jehandad Khan, Secretary Finance Syed Badshah Bukhari, Secretary Law Muhammad Arifeen Khan, Secretary Agriculture and Co-operatives Muhammad Hamyun Khan, Registrar Co-operatives Fida Ullah Khan, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Muhammad Ishfaq Khan and other concerned authorities.
Pervez Khattak regretted that on one side co-operative societies have turned into a vital global movement due to its immense benefits whereas the rural population of developed and backward countries equally took advantages from it but unfortunately the reign of loot by the past rulers also ruined this important sector on the other because the corrupt rulers gave loans to wrong people by taking commission and kickbacks and liquidated the entire system and bank.
However, he said, that now this sector and the co-operative bank would not only be restored and fully vitalised but loans would be provided to the genuine farmers under easy mechanism as well as its 100 percent recovery and achievement of the set targets would be ensured.
He said that co-operative societies could not only help our rural population to considerably increase the produce and quality of fruits, vegetables and other commodities but unemployment could also be vanished for good. The chief minister assured that in case of outstanding performance and achievements of the targets the 250 employees of co-operatives would be given the up-gradation incentives on pattern of their other colleagues in agriculture department. He also directed for handing over the co-operative training college spread on 24 Kanals land at Kohat Road to Co-operatives from higher education department so that it could be enabled to provide training facilities to its employees and farmers for best possible results.
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