ICA-AP Regional Cooperative Research Conference, held on November 5-6, 2015 at
VAMNICOM, Pune, India.
Summary of the Proceedings
The 10th ICA-AP Regional Cooperative Research Conference was held at Vaikuntha Mehta National Institute of Cooperative Management (VAMNICOM), Pune, India, on November 5 and 6, 2015.
54 delegates from Australia, India, Korea, Malaysia and Philippines attended the conference. The conference began with Saraswathi Vandana. Dr. Y.S.Patil, Associate Professor provided the participants with an overview of the structure, functioning and achievements of VAMNICOM. Prof. T. Paranjothi, the organizing Secretary of the Conference, gave an overview of the theme and modus operandi of the conference proceedings. He appreciated the financial support provided by NABARD, Surat District Bank, and other organizations. He noted that out of 60 abstracts received, 35 were selected through a process of blind review.
Mr. Sanjeeb Patjoshi, IPS, Director of VAMNICOM & CICTAB, in his presidential address observed that the co-operative movement is witnessing a sea change and the issues of governance, which the conference is addressing, is central to the success of co-operatives. Mr. Balasubramanian Iyer, Regional Director, ICA-AP delivered the keynote address and underlined the importance of research in strengthening the co-operative movement. Shri Dilipbhai B. Bhakta, Chairman of Surat District Central Cooperative Bank, in his felicitation speech, underlined the importance of co-operative sector in protecting the interest of the farmers. Prof. Anthony Jenson from University of Newcastle, Australia, spoke on behalf of participating international representatives and wished the conference all success.
Dr. Chandrapal Singh Yadav, Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha and President of NCUI, in his Inaugural address, stressed on the need for co-operatives to emerge as autonomous entities started and operated by the member community. He provided a historical sketch of the contribution of co-operatives in India and said that co-operatives hold different segments of the economy on a balanced footing. He appreciated the theme chosen for the Conference and wished the Conference all success.
Shri M.V.Ashok, Chief General Manager, NABARD; Dr. D.V. Deshpande, Director, Bankers Institute of Rural Development, Lucknow; Dr L.K.Vaswani, Director, Kalinga Institute of Technology; and Dr Manju Singh, Head PhD Programs Symbiosis International University, graced the occasion by their presence.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Dr. M.R. Joshi, Registrar, VAMNICOM.
The theme of the conference had been fixed as GOVERNANCE OF CO-OPERATIVES: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES and the Research Committee had accordingly invited research papers on the following sub themes:
1. Theories and models of governance
2. Structure and processes of governance
3. Political and economic democracy
4. Member participation
5. Women and youth participation
6. Legal environment affecting governance
7. Role of board and executive
8. General body powers and limitations
9. Co-operative leadership
30 Research Presentations were made at the conference by the authors from Australia, India, Korea, Malaysia and Philippines on different sub themes, in two parallel sessions on November 5 and 6, 2015. The papers presented in the conference will be further reviewed and selected papers will be published in the form of a book shortly.
The valedictory session of the Conference was held at 4.30 PM on November 06 at the Jubilee Hall of VAMNICOM. The closing function began with a prayer rendered by students. Prof. Anil Karanjkar, VAMNICOM welcomed the gathering. The closing function featured a special presentation by representatives of Aadishakti Foundation, Pune, who are involved in collective efforts to help the disadvantaged groups. Dr. Yashavantha Dongre of University of Mysore provided an overview of the seminar proceedings and observed that the technical sessions of the conference were very intense and some high quality research outputs were presented in the conference.
Mr. Romulo Vilamin from the Philippines, provided feedback on behalf of the participants. Mr. Balasubramanian Iyer, the Regional Director of ICA-AP expressed his happiness about the way the conference was organized and thanked the Director, faculty and staff of VAMNICOM for their splendid organization. Er Sanjeeb Patjoshi, IPS, Director of VAMNICOM & CICTAB, who presided over the closing session, observed that a good academic exercise is like a light that shows the future path. He called upon the research community to work with greater vigor and said that VAMNICOM is always willing to partner with any activity meant for the good of co-operatives. The closing session ended with a vote of thanks proposed by the Organizing Secretary of the Conference, Prof. T.Paranjothi.
