Pune: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Sunday virtually inaugurated the Western Regional Office of the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS) in Pune. The office will oversee multi-state cooperative societies operating across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa and the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Announcing the inauguration at an event in Talegaon Dabhade, Shah said Pune was selected after Maharashtra and Gujarat both sought to host the regional office. He credited Union Minister of State for Cooperation and Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol for insisting that it be established in Pune.
“The western region includes both Gujarat and Maharashtra. Naturally, there was immense pressure on me from the people of Gujarat, and they also had a rightful claim that this office should be in Gujarat. But our Murlidhar Mohol insisted that the office must be in Maharashtra, and that too in Pune,” Shah said. He congratulated Mohol and Maharashtra's cooperative sector representatives for securing the office for the state.
Office To Oversee Multi-State Cooperative Societies
The regional office is expected to bring administrative and regulatory services closer to multi-state cooperative societies operating in western India. It will help improve monitoring, coordination and compliance among these institutions.
According to an office order issued by the Ministry of Cooperation in April 2026, Pune was selected as the location for the country's first regional CRCS office. The move was aimed at improving the monitoring and governance of multi-state cooperative societies and reducing the administrative burden on the headquarters in New Delhi.
The Pune office will handle the verification of documents and members for proposals related to new registrations, amendments and conversions before forwarding them to the headquarters for final decisions. It will also scrutinise annual returns, conduct inspections and special audits, and monitor mandatory compliance requirements such as annual general meetings, board elections and statutory audits.
The office will handle complaints from members and stakeholders, conduct preliminary inquiries and coordinate with cooperative societies under liquidation. However, the CRCS headquarters in New Delhi will retain statutory and quasi-judicial powers, including final decisions on registration, approval of bye-law amendments, dispute resolution and winding-up proceedings under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002.
Mohol Calls It A Major Achievement For Maharashtra
Speaking at the event, Mohol described the establishment of the regional office in Pune as a major achievement for Maharashtra and the cooperative sector in western and southern India. He said the office would benefit cooperative institutions across the region, particularly those operating in sectors such as sugar.
Mohol also credited Shah and the cooperative sector representatives who worked to bring the office to Pune.
The Ministry of Cooperation had announced the virtual inauguration as part of Shah's Nov 15 programme in Talegaon Dabhade. The event also included the bhoomipujan of the National Heavy Engineering Cooperative (NHEC) revival project and the launch of Bharat Taxi services in Pune.
