Rajasthan Co-operative Societies Act, 2001
No: 16 Dated: Nov, 11 2002
THE RAJASTHAN CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES ACT, 2001
(Act No. 16 of 2002)
An act to consolidate and amend the law relating to co-operative societies in the State of Rajasthan.
Be it enacted by the Rajasthan State Legislature in the Fifty Second Year of the Republic of India, as follows :-
CHAPTER 1
PRELIMINARY
1. Short title, commencement and extent - (1) This Act may be called the Rajasthan Co-operative Societies Act, 2001.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Rajasthan.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. Definitions - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -
[(a) "Apex Co-operative Bank" means an apex society which is the federal body of the Central Co-operative Banks in the State and is engaged in the business of banking:]
[(aa)] "apex society" means a society whose core object is to provide facilities for the operation of other societies affiliated to it and whose area of operation extends to the whole of the State of Rajasthan;
(b) "area of operation of a co-operative society" means the geographical area, as specified in the bye-laws, to which the membership and activities of the society are confined in general;
(c) "bye-laws" means the bye-laws of a society, registered or deemed to be registered under this Act and for the time being in force and includes the registered amendments of such by-laws;
[(d) "central society" means a society whose area of operation is confined to a part of the State and which has in its main objects the promotion of the core objects of, and the provision of facilities for the operations of, other societies affiliated to it, and at least five members of which are societies themselves;]
[(da) "Central Co-operative Bank" means a central society which has primary agricultural credit societies as its members and is engaged in the business of banking;]
(e) "Chief Executive Officer" means a person, by whatever name called, who subject to the superintendence, control and directions of the committee, is entrusted with the management of the society;
(f) "core objects" in relation to a co-operative society means the main objects of the society for which it is formed; and which form the basis of its classification as per the rules;
(g) "Collector" means the Collector of a district, appointed under section 20 of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956 (Act No. 15 of 1956);
(h) "Committee" means the governing body of a co-operative society, by whatever name called, to which the management of the affairs of the society is entrusted;
(i) "co-operative society" or "society" means society registered or deemed to be registered under this Act;
(j) "co-operative society with limited liability" means a cooperative society, in which the liability of its members for the debts of the society, in the event of its being wound up is limited by its bye-laws, -
(i) to the amount, if any, unpaid on the shares respectively held by them; and
(ii) to such amount not more than five times the amount of the share capital subscribed by the members, which they may respectively undertake to contribute to the assets of the society;
(k) "co-operative society with unlimited liability" means a cooperative society the members of which are, in the event of its being wound up, jointly and severally liable for, and in respect of, its obligations and to contribute to any deficit in the assets of the society;
(l) "Executive Officer" means an officer, by whatever name called, who is appointed under sub section (2) of Section 29 to assist the Chief Executive Officer in the management of the affairs of a society subject to the superintendence, control and directions of the committee; (m) "family" means a family consisting of a husband and wife and their dependent children and the widowed mother of the husband dependent on them;
(n) "financing bank" means a co-operative society, the main object of which is to lend money to other societies and includes a Land Development Bank;
(o) "Government" means the Government of the State of Rajasthan;
(p) "member" means a person joining in the application for the registration of a co-operative society and a person admitted to membership after such registration in accordance with this Act and the rules and the bye-laws and includes a nominal and an associate member;
[(pa) "National Bank" means the National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development established under section 3 of the National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development Act, 1981 (Central Act No. 61 of 1981);]
[(pb) "office bearer" means a Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson of a co-operative society and includes any other person to be elected by the committee of a co-operative society;]
(q) "officer" means the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson Administrator, Liquidator, or a member of a committee and the Chief Executive Officer, by whatever name called, and includes and other person empowered under the rules and the bye-laws to give directions in regard to the business of a co-operative society;
[(qa) "primary agricultural credit society" means a co-operative society as defined under clause (cciv) of section 5 of Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (Central Act No. 10 of 1949) and is registered under the Act;]
[(r) "primary society" means a society which is neither an apex society nor a central society and which is constituted primarily by individuals as members;]