History of the Bank

Companions co-operative credit society was established on 29 may 1984 with the help of young mens association in Chulna. In the earlier period, people use to take loan from Sahukars and used to securitize (Gahaan) their land and house. The system was a major barrier in Chulne's growth as high interest rates were charged against the loans taken. Feeling the need to change the system, The Young Mens Association started collecting Fund from the members and other villagers and once the fund was collected it was used for those who were in need of the same. With the help of the fund they (The Young Mens Association) started providing loans at lower interest rates. This was the foundation of Companions Co-operative Credit Society Ltd. which improved the financial state of Chulna village. Today the Companions co-operative society has expanded all over with 3 branches been situated in and across the village.
th

1. The main branch at The Young Mens Association building, Chulna. 2. Manickpur branch. 3. St. Augustines branch. Its current employees are 30 and are owned by 7,500 (shareholders) with the share capital of Rs. 2.5 crore. people

Principles Of CoOperation
1).Voluntary and open membership: Co-operatives are voluntary organizations open to all persons. It means anybody can join the society and there is no compulsion of any kind and accept the responsibilities of membership without any social, political or religious discrimination. The society is open to all. There is no compulsion that once a person has joined co-operative he cannot leave that. This, coming and going is purely voluntary. The member has right to withdraw from the society. Though the membership is open, it does not mean that there cannot be any restriction. Membership can be refused to the member who is likely to create hurdles in the working of the society. It only means the door is open to all of them who accept the objectives and share the responsibilities of the membership.

2).Democratic Control: It means that all the co-operative affairs will be manned and controlled by democratically elected people. They will be accountable to the members of their acts of omission and commission. All the members have equal voting rights (one member one vote).The entire affairs are governed and supervised by a democratically elected body to conduct the affairs of the society and provide guidance wherever necessary. The democratic principle is followed thus a).The limit of one vote per member irrespective of the number of shares held. b).The elimination of voting by proxy. c).The requirements of regular reports from the executives. d).Constant education to keep the members informed. e).Accessibility of co-operative books for inspection by the member.

3). Limited interest on capital It is an unique principle, where capital is treated as subsidiary, the prime and ultimate objective being service to its members. The ICA states, The economic results arising out of the operations of a society belongs to the members of that society and shall be distributed in such a manner as would avoid one member gaining at the expense of others.Capital is a factor of production and like any other factor; it is also entitled to receive a fair rate of return. In co-operatives capital cannot dominate. Maximizations of profit in co-operative like any other type of business organization is considered to be inconsistent with the principles of co-operation.

4).Equitable Distribution of Surplus: According to this principle, in a co-operative society, while serving to its members, profit may be a by-product. But, Profit motive is bad. Such profit or surplus earned by a co-operative society shall be distributed according to the decision of members. Limited interest (dividend) on capital can be paid to the members in proportion to their transactions with the society, after making provision for development of business and social welfare activities. In a co-operative organization, the surplus is distributed on the basis of the member dealings with a society.

5).Self-help and mutual-help: Co-operatives are meant for those who are economically weak. In order to promote their economic interest and strengthen themselves, they come together and form a co-operative society, pool their resources and work together for mutual benefit. The benefit which comes out of collective efforts is shared by all the participants. Moreover, individually a weak person may not be able to withstand the exploitations of the stronger. But a larger number of people of his standard having common economic need, when

work together combined by pooling their resources can strengthen their position and establish them in a suitable place in the society.

Followed by bank:

Co-operative credit society was formed to help the poor farmers of the village. Hence this bank collects money from the members in form of shares and helps the poor members in form of loan.

6).Co-operative Education: According to the ICA, All co-operative societies shall make provision for the education of their members, officers and employees and the general public, in the principles and techniques of co-operation both economic and democratic. This principle states that wide publicity should be given to the principles of co-operation. It is with the development of proper education that people will join willingly the co-operative. All the people should be kept informed about the activities of the co-operatives. Co-operative education principle is discussed in three aspects .They are a).Education for Members: Most of the member of co-operative society is poor and illiterate in order to make known to them the principles of the particular co-operative society and get their active participation in the working of the society; cooperative societies spend a lot on educating its members. b).Education for Office Bearers: Education for office bearers of co-operative societies need be advanced, technical and thorough both in the lines of co-operation and business

c).Education for Prospective Co-operatives: To get more people into a particular co-operative sector people should be informed about the principles, its aims and achievements and future plans.

7).Co-operation among Co-operatives:

This principle is developed to increase the strength of the co-operatives and to enhance the interdependence among various co-operatives. The ICA rule states that,All,co-operative organizations in order to serve best the interest of their members and communities, shall actively participate in every practical way with other co-operatives at local, national and international levels, having as their aim the achievement of variety of actions by co-operatives throughout the world.