New Multipurpose PACS, Dairy and Fisheries Cooperative Societies Plan

What is the New Multipurpose PACS plan?

The plan to establish new multipurpose PACS, dairy and fisheries cooperative societies is an initiative of the Ministry of Cooperation, approved on 15 February 2023. Its goal is to form 2 lakh new multipurpose Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (M-PACS), dairy cooperative societies and fisheries cooperative societies over five years, so that every panchayat and village in India is served by a working cooperative.

The problem the plan addresses is coverage. Analysis of the National Cooperative Database found that out of roughly 2.7 lakh gram panchayats in the country, more than 17,000 had no PACS at all. On top of that, more than 5,000 existing PACS, 41,000 dairy cooperatives and 4,500 fisheries cooperatives were dormant, defunct or under liquidation; registered on paper but doing no business.

To standardise the process, the Ministry of Cooperation, with NABARD, NDDB and NFDB, launched a Standard Operating Procedure called the Margdarshika on 19 September 2024, setting out targets, timelines and the role of every stakeholder from the national committee down to the district.

What is a multipurpose PACS?

A multipurpose PACS is a village credit society that also runs non-credit businesses. The Ministry of Cooperation's model bye-laws for PACS allow a society to take up more than 25 business activities, including:

• Short-term, medium-term and long-term credit to members.
• Distribution of fertiliser, seeds and pesticides.
• Dairy, poultry and fisheries activities.
• Custom hiring centres for farm machinery.
• Procurement of foodgrains and storage or warehousing.
• Fair price shops under the public distribution system.
• LPG, petrol and diesel dealerships.
• Bank mitra and business correspondent services.
• Insurance agency work.
• Common Service Centres for digital government services.

The same model bye-laws widen membership and require adequate representation for women and Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe members on the board, and set governance rules meant to keep societies viable rather than dormant.

Who is eligible, and who cannot apply?

Eligible:

• Residents of a gram panchayat or village that has no functioning cooperative society. These are the priority locations under the plan.
• Farmers for a new multipurpose PACS, milk producers for a new dairy cooperative society, and fishers and fish farmers for a new fisheries cooperative society.
• Existing dairy and fisheries societies that are weak but revivable, which are covered under the "strengthening" side of the plan rather than fresh registration.
• Members must fall within the area of operation written into the society's bye-laws and must subscribe to share capital.

Cannot apply / not eligible:

• An individual cannot apply to the Ministry of Cooperation for a personal grant under this plan. There is no cash benefit, no DBT transfer and no beneficiary list. The unit is the society.
• A village that already has a functioning PACS or dairy society is not a priority location; the plan targets uncovered and dormant-society panchayats first.
• A group cannot register a society on its own initiative and claim automatic central funding. Registration is granted by the state's competent authority under the state Cooperative Societies Act, and support flows through convergence with existing schemes.
• Companies, trusts and unregistered self-help groups are not eligible to be registered as cooperatives under this route.

Minimum membership, minimum share capital and the competent registering authority all differ by state, because cooperation is a state subject. Check your own state's Cooperative Societies Act and Rules.

How to apply for a new multipurpose PACS

The Margdarshika lays out the formation sequence. In practice a village group enters the process at step 2 or 3.

1. Mapping and identification. NABARD, with the state cooperation department, DCCBs and StCBs, identifies uncovered gram panchayats and dormant or defunct PACS. The Margdarshika identified 17,276 uncovered gram panchayats and 5,476 dormant PACS for liquidation and replacement.
2. District workshop and target setting. The District Cooperative Development Committee (DCDC), chaired by the District Collector, and the Joint Working Committee (JWC) below it fix the district's targets.
3. Mobilisation of members. The JWC, with the district cooperation department, the DCCB and the gram panchayat, enrols founding members. This is the point at which villagers join.
4. Formation of the Board of Directors and share capital. The JWC helps identify suitable directors and mobilise the share capital needed for registration.
5. Appointment of a CEO and staff, guided by the JWC.
6. Preparation of bye-laws on the lines of the Government of India model bye-laws, customised to the state's Act and Rules.
7. Finalising the society's location, an office with basic infrastructure, set up with help from the state or district cooperative department.
8. Submission of registration documents by the Board to the competent authority of the district or state cooperation department.
9. Registration of the M-PACS by that competent authority under the relevant Act and Rules.
10. Affiliation to a DCCB or State Cooperative Bank, facilitated by NABARD in consultation with the StCB and the state department, so the new society can access the cooperative credit structure.
11. Capacity building: NABARD sensitises the Board and trains the CEO and staff on cooperative principles, bookkeeping, meetings and applicable government schemes.

For a dairy society the same flow runs through NDDB, the state milk federation and the district milk union; for a fisheries society through NFDB and the state and district fisheries federations.

Who implements the plan and what are the targets?

The plan works by convergence of existing central schemes rather than a new budget line. Funds and technical support come from the National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) 2.0, the Dairy Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF), the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF), NCDC lending and NABARD support.

Five-year agency targets under the Margdarshika:

Oversight runs through four committees: an Inter-Ministerial Committee chaired by the Union Home and Cooperation Minister, a National Level Coordination Committee chaired by the Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, State Cooperative Development Committees chaired by Chief Secretaries, and District Cooperative Development Committees chaired by District Collectors. A Project Management Unit of experts supports social mobilisation and coordination.

How much progress has been made?

As per the National Cooperative Database, 30,083 new PACS, dairy and fishery cooperative societies had been registered and 15,793 existing dairy and fisheries societies had been strengthened as on 15 November 2025, since the plan was approved on 15 February 2023 to 45,876 societies touched in total.

The Ministry of Cooperation held a national event in New Delhi at which Union Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah inaugurated 10,000 newly established M-PACS, dairy and fisheries cooperative societies together, an indication of the pace at which registrations are being cleared in batches rather than one by one.

Progress figures are updated in Parliament replies and on cooperation.gov.in. Check the latest date-stamped number before relying on any figure, including these.

How to check the status of a new society in your village

1. Ask the district cooperation officer or the assistant registrar of cooperative societies whether your gram panchayat is on the uncovered list for the current phase.
2. Ask the DCCB branch covering your area, since NABARD works through DCCBs to identify and form new M-PACS.
3. Ask the district milk union for a dairy society or the district fisheries federation for a fisheries society.
4. Check the National Cooperative Database entry for your panchayat through the state cooperation department, since targeting is driven by that database.

Common reasons a new society does not get registered

• Not enough founding members to meet the minimum set by the state Cooperative Societies Act.
• Share capital not mobilised, which blocks registration even when members are willing.
• Bye-laws not aligned to the state Act or to the model bye-laws, sent back for correction by the registering authority.
• The old dormant PACS has not been liquidated yet, so a new society cannot be registered in the same area of operation.
• No board of directors identified who meet the eligibility conditions in the bye-laws.
• No premises for the society's office.

Each of these is fixable through the Joint Working Committee, which exists precisely to unblock formation at the district level.

Help and grievance redressal

• District Cooperative Development Committee, chaired by the District Collector. The escalation point within the district.
• District or state registrar of cooperative societies, for registration, bye-laws and membership disputes.
• NABARD district development manager, for M-PACS formation and affiliation issues.
• District milk union or NDDB for dairy societies, district fisheries federation or NFDB for fisheries societies.
• Ministry of Cooperation, Atal Akshay Urja Bhawan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110003, and cooperation.gov.in.
• CPGRAMS at pgportal.gov.in for a written grievance.

Registration of a cooperative society carries only the statutory fee fixed by your state. No agent can charge for "getting a new PACS sanctioned for your village", because sanction is a committee decision based on the uncovered panchayat list, not a purchasable approval.