Co-Operatives: A Few Words

The term co-operation is derived from the Latin word co-operari, where the word co means ‘with’ and operari means ‘to work’. Thus, co operation means working together. So those who want to work together with some common economic objective can form a society which is termed as “co-operative society”. It is a voluntary association of persons who work together to promote their economic interest. It works on the principle of self-help as well as mutual help. The main objective is to provide support to the members. Nobody joins a cooperative society to earn profit. People come forward as a group, pool their individual resources, utilize them in the best possible manner, and derive some common benefit out of it. It is an alternative form of organization in the capitalist system, found in some decentralized forms of socialism. Co operatives may be formed by producers, as well as by consumers or workers. The co-operative movement grew out of ideas formulated in the early 19th century by Robert Owen in Britain and Charles Fourier in France, and has spread throughout the world. Since the arrival of co-operative in England, it has taken many forms. Having been acknowledged as association of smaller peoples, it has its activities in various sectors. But social scientists have acknowledged it due to its efficiency. This paper deals with some of the loopholes of cooperative and also has described its various forms and its membership strength. This paper is based on theoretical issues depending on secondary sources.