Growth and Performance of Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS) in Haryana

Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) constitute the foundation of the rural short-term cooperative lending framework in India. This paper aims to evaluate the performance of Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) in Haryana. The research uses secondary data obtained from the annually published reports of the National Federation of State Cooperative Banks and State Cooperative Apex Banks for the period from 2004-05 to 2021-22. The result of the study, derived from the annual growth rate, is the compound growth rate in growth in PACS. It suggests that a negative growth rate is observed in the number of PACS; however, an increasing growth rate is noted in the number of memberships. Positive growth is evident in several metrics, including paid-up share capital, reserves, deposits, borrowings, and working capital. Both loan credit and balance due increased during the study period. A considerable credit-deposit ratio is also observed. The accumulation of overdue payments significantly decreases the effectiveness of PACS, as government-announced debt relief projects discourage borrowers from repaying loans punctually.