CO-OPERATIVE CREDIT IN INDIA 



23 



§ 2. The " CO-OPERATR-E SOCIETIES ACT, I912." 



Experience in the working of the earlier Act had shown the desirabiUty 

 of widening its scope and amending some of its detailed provisions. The 

 Act was accordingly repealed and replaced by a new act entitled " The Co- 

 operative Societies Act. 1912 ", which came into force on Jidy ist, 1912. 

 The earlier Act is entitled " The Co-operative Credit Societies Act, 1904 " 

 and the difference in the titles of the two Acts marks the first change. 

 The new Act provides for the registration of any Society "which has as its 

 object the promotion of the economic interest of its members in accordance 

 with co-operative principles ", or any Society "established with the object 

 of facilitating the operations of such a Society" All forms of co-operation, 

 therefore, are recognized, including co-operative credit. The distinction bet- 

 ween Urban and Rural societies is dropped, but the provision that agri- 

 cultural credit societies shall generally be founded on unlimited liability, is 

 retained. A new feature of the Act is the recognition of societies, the 

 members of which are other co-operative societies, and a sharp distinction 

 is drawn between societies composed exclusively of indi-vdduals and societ- 

 ies in which any one member is a registered society. The changes already 

 enumerated, as well as some amendments of minor importance, may be 

 shown by comparing certain clauses in the new Act vidth the correspond- 

 ing clauses in the old, arranging the text in parallel columns. 



Act of 1904. 



Act of 1912. 



Sub-title. 



An Act to provide for the con- 

 stitution and control of Co-oper- 

 ative Credit Societies. 



An Act to amend the L,aw relat. 

 ing to Co-operative Societies. 



Constitution of Societies. 



A society shall consist of ten or 

 more persons above the age of eight- 

 een years 



{a) residing in the same town or 

 village or in the same group of vil- 

 lages ; or 



(6) subject to the sanction of 

 the Registrar, consisting of members 

 of the same tribe, class or caste. 



No society, other than a society 

 of which a member is a registered 

 society, shall be registered under 

 this Act which does not consist 

 of at least ten persons above the 

 age of eighteen years and, where 

 the object of the society is the crea- 

 tion of funds to be lent to its mem- 

 bers unless such persons 



{a) reside in the same town or 

 village or group of villages ; or 



(6) save where the Registrar other- 

 \^ise directs, are members of the 

 same tribe, class, caste or occupa- 

 tion. 



