Q.The apex of the three-tier co-operative credit structure in Maharashtra is the:

The three-tier structure is a pyramid, and only one bank sits at its very top for the whole state.

The primary society is the base and the district central bank the middle tier; the urban co-operative bank belongs to the separate non-agricultural structure.

The three-tier co-operative credit structure for rural credit is a pyramid with a primary society at the base, a district central bank in the middle, and one state-level bank at the apex.

Option-by-option analysis:

• (a) Primary Agricultural Credit Society — Wrong. This is the base of the pyramid, at village level, dealing directly with the farmer.
• (b) District Central Co-operative Bank — Wrong. This is the middle tier, at district level, acting as a balancing centre.
• (c) Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank — Correct. It is the single apex bank for the whole state, at the top of the structure.
• (d) Urban Co-operative Bank — Wrong. It belongs to the separate non-agricultural (urban) co-operative structure, not to the three-tier rural structure.

Students confuse the urban co-operative bank (part of the non-agricultural structure) with the apex of the three-tier rural structure. Only the state co-operative bank stands at the apex of the three tiers.