About the Book

Cooperative sector in India, though world’s largest, has many ills that has shadowed this potentially most significant people’s movement. Government intervention is one such problem which is often cited as a big bane. The call for autonomy of cooperative sector remains pronounced for a long time now. Some states in India have tried to address this issue by passing a separate legislation for Mutually Aided Cooperatives.

With the passing of Souharda Cooperative Act in 1997, Karnataka state entered a dual legislative framework for cooperative sector. The Souharda Cooperatives are autonomous cooperatives that have least state intervention and support. In the last two and half decades there emerged more than 6,000 Souharda Cooperatives with their own federation – Karnataka State Souharda Federal Cooperative – which has quasi legislative authority unlike the federations of any other enterprise forms. Even though six other states in India have similar legislations, the structure and performance of these cooperatives in Karnataka are unique.

Has functional autonomy lead to better governance practices and greater business innovation and stability? Can the Souharda Cooperative model of Karnataka be replicated in other parts of the country and overseas? What are the issues and challenges autonomous cooperatives face in the present day dynamic market situation? These and a few other questions are sought to be answered in this volume, through scholarly analysis of varied functional areas of Souharda Cooperatives.

Contents

Contributors

Section I: The Context

Introduction

Yashavantha Dongre

State and Cooperatives in India: Issues of Autonomy and Governance

Yashavantha Dongre

Souharda Cooperative Act: A Critical Perspective

S.A. Siddhanthi

Section II: Performance

Mapping of Souharda Cooperatives in Karnataka

Indira M.

Financial Performance and Economic Efficiency of Souharda Cooperatives in Karnataka

Indira M. and Venkataraja. B.

Youth Leadership and Business Innovation: A Study of Souharda Cooperatives in Karnataka

Yashavantha Dongre and Sharanagowda G. Patil

Empowering Women Through Entrepreneurship: Purposive Credit Deployment by Souharda Cooperatives

Yashavantha Dongre

Enhancing Efficiency and Addressing Climate Change: An Analysis of Digitisation Initiatives by Souharda Cooperatives in Karnataka

Sharanagowda G. Patil

Green Office Management Policy of the Karnataka State Souharda Federal Cooperative Ltd.

Sharanagowda G. Patil

Section III: Case Studies

Facilitating Sustainable Cooperative Business: Innovative Role of Federal Cooperative

Yashavantha Dongre and Sharanagowda G. Patil

Winning the Market through Innovative Strategies: A Case Study of SPS Credit Cooperative

Venkatesha H.P.

Ensuring Sustainable Livelihood Through Financial Liquidity: Case Study of a Marketing Cooperative

Yashavantha Dongre

Autonomy and Professionalism in New Generation Cooperatives: The Case of Sri Saraswathi Credit

Souharda Cooperative Limited

Paranjothi T.

Section IV: Conclusion

Making Autonomy Work

Yashavantha Dongre

Index

About the Author / Editor

Yashavantha Dongre is Vice Chancellor, Chanakya University, Bengaluru. A Ph.D in Commerce, he has served as Professor of Commerce and Dean at the University of Mysore, Mysuru. Dr Dongre did his post-doctoral research at Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan. He was a Visiting Overseas Researcher at Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Osaka, Japan and a Japan Foundation Fellow at University of Tokyo. After superannuating from University of Mysore, he served as Visiting Professor at Ritsumeikan University, Japan.

Third Sector, consisting of non-profits, cooperatives and social businesses are the areas of his research interest. He has handled many major research projects in these areas and has published over 100 articles in national and international journals and magazines. He has also published eight edited books and written widely both in English and Kannada newspapers.

Professor Dongre is currently a member of the Committee set up by the Ministry of Cooperation, Government of India to draft National Cooperative Policy.