Karnataka has a special place in the Indian cooperative sector, as it is one of the first states to have started the movement. The first agricultural credit cooperative society in Karnataka started in a village called Kanaginahaala, Gadag district, in 1905. In the same year, a consumer cooperative society also started in Bangalore. While the general perception is that the cooperative sector is weak and inactive, Karnataka fares better, at the third position, after Gujarat and Maharashtra.