Agartala, Feb 4 (PTI) Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Tuesday set a target to enroll 20-30 lakh people into cooperative societies to boost the socio-economic condition of residents of the northeastern state.

The state has a population of around 40 lakh.

Addressing a programme on the promotion and development of cooperatives in Tripura at Rabindra Bhavan here, the chief minister said that only 9-10 lakh people were directly or indirectly involved in the cooperative movement at present.

"It means that a substantial number of people of the state are not involved in cooperatives. The cooperative department shall set a target of bringing 20-30 lakh people under the ambit of cooperatives. If we can do this, the socio-economic condition of the state will improve," he said.

Claiming that the cooperative movement got vibrant after Union Home Minister Amit Shah took charge of the Cooperative Ministry, the chief minister said, "If cooperatives are being promoted, the race for jobs in government sector will reduce. Job seekers will transform themselves into job providers. The cooperatives may also appear as handy to check corrupt practices." "If cooperatives become economically stable, the surrendered militants may also get involved in the cooperative movement. There has been discussion on waiving income tax for the cooperative sector," he said, adding there must be efforts to provide loans to the cooperatives to strengthen their activities. PTI PS ACD

Cooperative expansion aims to enrol a large share of the population to bolster socio-economic inclusion and access fiscal support. A policy objective seeks to expand enrolment in cooperative societies to increase economic participation and convert job seekers into job creators. Supporting measures under consideration include a possible income tax waiver for the cooperative sector and targeted loan facilitation to bolster cooperative viability, with ancillary goals of improving governance and aiding reintegration of surrendered militants.