The Organization

The Sridharpur Co-operative Bank is a Primary Agricultural Credit Society and is not a Bank. In Burdwan District, the District Central Cooperative Bank, viz., Burdwan Central Cooperative Bank Ltd., was established in 1917. Late Hanseswar Banerjee, a Junior Lawyer of Burdwan Bar (subsequently a Barrister at Law of Calcutta High Court), coming from a zamindar family, was inspired by the establishment of the District Central Cooperative Bank in Burdwan. He took initiative to organize a primary cooperative society on the Raiffeisen type in his own native village, Sridharpur, in the district of Burdwan (West Bengal). He convinced the villagers about the importance of the cooperative movement for saving the poor people from the clutches of the money lenders in particular and for providing robust support to the development of the village economy in general. Thus, on 13th April, 1918, the Society was registered under the name ‘Sridharpur Cooperative Bank’ to cater the credit needs of its members, the membership being confined to the inhabitants of Sridharpur and its three adjoining villages viz. Sarra, Tantibaksa and Kashiara (Afterwards, being inspired by the activities of the Sridharpur Cooperative Bank, the villagers of Kashiara established a new society under the title ‘Kashiara S.K.U.S. Ltd. in the year 1981).

Brief History Of The Co-Operative

Right from the date of inception of the society, the founders thereof had a very clear vision about its future and therefore it had stressed on creating its own resources instead of depending on funds to be received from external sources/higher financing agencies.

The society maintains complete record of each and every household of the three villages, such as, population of the villages, male and female population, belonging to SC/ST/OBC/General etc., profession-wise categorization of the families residing in the villages, land covered under irrigation and that not provided with the irrigation facilities, different sources of irrigation and land covered there under, crop-wise land coverage, etc. This information has enabled the society in adopting a very planned approach towards the development of the villages and precisely this is why the society has never incurred loss since the date of its establishment till date and the society has been able to diversify its business basically keeping in view the requirements of its members as also the profitability of the society. Thus Sridharpur Cooperative Bank which is a unlimited society, probably the one society of its nature in the State of West Bengal, has gone from strength to strength with attaining age due to proper leadership, efficient management, internal resource building, business diversification, comprehensive approach for development and the last but not the least by ensuring participation of everybody including the staff members in the developmental process.

Chronological Index Of Development