As We Look Back At This 26-Year Long Journey, It Is For Everyone To See How All These Objectives Have Been Successfully Achieved, While Also Creating New Landmarks Along The Way. The Journey Of Lokmanya Society That Started On August 31, 1995, From A Small Room Has Grown By Leaps And Bounds And Evolved Into A Network Of 213 Branches Across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa And Delhi.The Operations Of The Network, Which Are Growing By The Day, Are Spearheaded From The Regional Offices Of Lokmanya Society, Located At Belgaum, Pune, Mumbai, North Goa, South Goa, Sawantwadi, Ratnagiri, Kolhapur, Sangli And Nashik. Today, Lokmanya Society Has Established Itself As India’s Biggest Multipurpose, Multi-State Cooperative Society.

History of Co-operative Movement : Co-operative movement according to historians began during 19th century in UK, US and other countries. Robert Owen (1771–1858) is considered as the father of the cooperative movement. In 1844 the Rochdale Pioneers founded the modern Cooperative Movement in Lancashire, England, to provide an affordable alternative to poor-quality and adulterated food and provisions, using any surplus to benefit the community. The first co-operative society of India was registered in 1905. The first co-operative movement in Asia was stated at Kanaginahal in Gadag , Karnataka, under the leadership of Sri Siddanagouda Sanna Ramanagouda Patil (1843–1933), who is known as the ‘Father of Cooperative movement in Karnataka’. The Agricultural Credit Cooperative Society was launched in Kanaginahal on 8.7.1905. It was the first of its kind in Asia.

Co-operative Movement in India : The principle of cooperation was in practice in India long before, the so-called cooperative movement that began with the application of cooperative principles to business organization in western countries. A student of Indian sociology knows that in ancient rural India people used to co operate with each other for mutual benefit and that is the basis for the modern co operative movement. Asian societies have adapted the co-operative principles that were successful in the world.The cooperative movement in India may be looked into in two stages namely in pre-Independence era and in post-Independence era Soon thereafter India’s first “urban cooperative credit society” was registered in Kanjivaram in the Madras Presidency in October, 1904. Anyonya Co-operative Bank Limited (ACBL) located in the city of Vadodara (formerly Baroda) in Gujarat, which was the first co-operative bank in India. Amul is an Indian dairy cooperative society, based at Anand in the Indian state of Gujarat. Formed in 1946 it is a cooperative brand managed by a cooperative body, the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. (GCMMF), which today is jointly owned by 3.6 million (3.6 million) milk producers in Gujarat, and the apex body of 13 District Milk Unions, spread across 13,000 villages of Gujarat.

Initially, the co-operative movement in Maharashtra was confined mainly to the field of agricultural credit but subsequently, it extended to other sectors such as agro-processing, agro marketing, sugar co-operatives, fisheries cooperative societies, co-operative dairy societies, textiles, housing societies, consumer stores etc .When Lokmanya Tilak turned 61, his followers presented him with a purse of Rs. 1 Lakh, a huge amount in those days. The true patriot he was, Lokmanya Tilak added his own contribution to and asked them to use all of it in the nation’s service. Lokmanya multipurpose co-op Society is not just inspired by this belief and commitment to the nation but has always made it a priority to work for the betterment of the nation.