Kozhikode ULCCS a role model for labour cooperatives, says UN official

Kozhikode:The Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society
(ULCCS) is a successful model for labour cooperatives,
which has no parallel in the world, United Nations Resident
Coordinator in India Lise Grande has stated.
She was delivering the inaugural address of an
international conference on ‘Cooperatives in transition in
the era of globalization’ organised by the ULCCS in
association with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences
(TISS) and the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode
(IIMK) at the Tagore Centenary Hall in Kozhikode on
Wednesday.
Presenting an international perspective on the role of
cooperatives in the changing world, Ms. Grande, who is
also the UN’s Development Programme (UNDP) Resident
Representative in New Delhi, said that though there were
several successful models for cooperatives in the world the
ULCCS’s was unique and different from the rest. “We have
not seen a cooperative model as vibrant and consequential
as ULCCS anywhere in the world,” she said.
At a time when economies across the world were making
desperate efforts to come out of the crisis they were in,
certain cooperatives which have put forward successful
models of functioning in different sectors without being
affected by the crisis, deserved to be looked more seriously
and honestly, she said.
“Cooperatives like the ULCCS are important because they
have shown us a winning way when the rest of the word
was frantically looking for a solution,” said Ms. Grande.
Pointing out some of the striking success stories in the
cooperative sector from different parts of the world
including Bolivia, Columbia and Brazil she clarified why
they should be called success stories.
The total worth of the cooperatives across the world would
be equal to the ninth largest economy in the world, she
said.
Maintaining that around 50 per cent of the total food
requirement of the world was met by different cooperatives,
Ms. Grande said that the fact that they successfully
withstood the world economic crisis when the rest of the
sectors were rattled also should not be overlooked. “This is
also a sector, which always supported and protected the
interest of the working class,” she said.
Concluding her speech, Ms. Grande said that the UN had
decided to comprehensively document the success story of
the ULCCS by producing a documentary film on it for the
rest of the world to take lessons from it. “There are great
lessons for the rest of the world to learn from the success
of ULCCS,” she said.
A book written by CPI(M) leader and former Finance
Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac on the birth, growth and
transition of ULCCS, depicting the 88 years story of the
cooperative was also released on the occasion.
The book in Malayalam is in six chapters and is titled,
‘Munnetam.’ Its English version is also planned to be
released soon, said Mr. Isaac, who spoke on the occasion
presenting the theme of the international conference.
Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty presided over the
function.
ULCCS president Rameshan Paleri, Deputy leader of the
Opposition Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Mayor A.K. premajam
and A. Pradeepkumar, MLA, among others spoke on the
occasion.
The remaining sessions of the three-day international
event will be held on the IIMK campus