MANGALORE: Awareness should be spread in urban areas about the cooperative movement to give the cooperative sector a strong foothold in civic society, Sahakara Bharati general secretary Suryakanth Kelkar has said.

Inaugurating the first cooperative venture into tourism by Bharati Tourism Development Cooperative Ltd., here on Thursday, Mr. Kelkar said the urban tourist is often exploited. But the entry of the cooperative sector into tourism will help in protecting the interests of tourists, he added.

Launching a tirade against the media for projecting the cooperative movement in poor light, Mr. Kelkar said the press only highlights stray cases of collapse of a cooperative institution, which casts the entire cooperative sector in poor light. Mr. Kelkar said the cooperative sector continues to flourish and mega cooperative movements such as AMUL are helping rural people become self-reliable. He said he is happy that the cooperative sector is venturing into tourism, which offers immense scope.

Earlier, Central Arecanut Marketing and Processing Cooperative Ltd. President S.R. Rangamurthy said the cooperative sector follows ethical business practices and this is the reason why people believe in it.

Launched

Three new tourist circuits were launched by Bharati Tourism Development Cooperative Ltd.

While two circuits last eight and nine days, one schedule towards Goa is of four-days duration. A special tour for cooperatives has also been launched.

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