A Comparative and Growth-Based Classification Matrix of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies at the State Level: An Empirical Study

(https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21790258)

Abstract

This study conducts a comparative assessment of growth & functional of PACS and Classification of states based on CAGR and Membership of different states of Primary Cooperative Credit Societies (PCCSs) across selected Indian states using quantitative secondary data from the NAfscob.org website for the period 2013-14 to 2023-24, i.e., for 10 years, and ranking based on increase of PACS, Membership based CAGR, Dormant and Defunct PACS. The study primarily uses PACS performance data from NAfscob.org, Cooperatives.com, and other sources, including NABARD and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Report. This study aims to deliver a quantitative, comparative, and empirical analysis of the performance of primary agricultural credit societies across Indian states, facilitating the identification of strengths and weaknesses among states on different parameters. An overall ranking, composite performance index, and ratio analysis are applied to compare state-level performance. Our Study Findings suggest that significant interstate variations are due to factors such as unequal state growth, population, land area, economic development, rural credit demand, governance quality, and policy support. The study provides policy recommendations to policymakers and states to improve average- and worst-performing PACS, based on PACS performance by state.