Cooperative Societies (Repayment of Loans) Ordinance, 1960

This Ordinance addressed a historical problem of unsecured or under-secured loans owed to cooperative banks and cooperative societies, by forcing borrowers to repay and properly secure such loans on a fixed timetable. Section 2 defines a "loan" covered by the Ordinance as one that is unsecured or insufficiently secured, taken either from an ordinary cooperative society by a non-member, or from a cooperative bank by anyone (including a member).

Section 3 sets out the repayment schedule: any such loan (or an unpaid instalment of one) that was due more than a year before the Ordinance's start had to be repaid in stages -- at least 20% within six months of the Ordinance coming into force, with the remaining balance secured by mortgage, pledge, or similar security on the borrower's or surety's property and repaid in instalments over a period not exceeding two years, as directed by the cooperative society or the Registrar of Cooperative Societies. The Registrar could extend this by up to a further six months if at least half the loan had already been repaid within the initial two-year window.

Section 4 required every cooperative society to report all such loans to the Registrar within thirty days, after which the Registrar would notify the borrower and, if the borrower disputed the loan or the amount owed, decide the matter after an inquiry; the Registrar's decision was final and could not be challenged in court. Section 5 gave the Registrar the same investigative powers as a civil court (summoning witnesses, requiring documents, appointing guardians for minors, and so on).

Section 7 made contravening the Ordinance or its rules punishable with imprisonment up to two years, a fine, or both, and Section 8 required a written complaint from the Registrar before any court could take up a case.

This is an old law from 1960 aimed at a specific, time-bound historical loan-recovery drive; its repayment deadlines and monetary thresholds (such as the thirty-thousand-rupee figure marking the line for what counts as adequately secured) reflect 1960s values and its main operative purpose has likely long since been completed.