August 4: Cooperative victims have put off their sit-in protest at Maitighar Mandala following the signing of a seven-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government.

The MoU was inked during the talks involving Minister for Land, Cooperative and Poverty Alleviation Ranjeeta Shrestha, Secretary Gokarna Mani Duwadi, Registrar at the Department of Cooperatives Nawaraj Ghimire, and the victim representatives at Singha Durbar on Thursday.

As part of the MoU, key agreements have been reached to address the concerns of cooperative depositors. The Ministry has committed to expedite the creation of a savings and credit security fund, which aims to safeguard the deposited amounts of cooperative members.

Additionally, the Ministry will take immediate steps to establish a credit information center and a credit settlement tribunal to enhance the efficiency of credit settlement processes within cooperative organizations.

The cooperative victims, who have been staging their protest at Maitighar Mandala for several months, will now have representation in the cooperative sector reform recommendation task force.

Furthermore, the Ministry, cooperative department, and the embattled management committee have agreed to collaboratively lay the groundwork for essential legal reforms to address the challenges faced by cooperative organizations.

To facilitate the return of depositors' funds, the Ministry will coordinate closely with the Office of Problematic Cooperatives Management Committee.

A clear action plan will be developed to ensure a smooth process of returning the deposited money to the rightful owners, as outlined in the agreement.