Uralungal society chairman Rameshan Paleri passes away

Kozhikode: Rameshan Paleri, Chairman of the Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society (ULCCS) and one of Kerala's most respected cooperative leaders, passed away on Tuesday morning at the age of 66. He had been undergoing treatment for liver cancer at a private hospital in Coimbatore. He breathed his last at around 8.30 am.

The mortal remains will be kept for public homage at Kozhikode Town Hall at 3 pm, Vadakara Town Hall at 6.30 pm, and at the ULCCS headquarters at 8.30 pm on Tuesday. The funeral will be held at 11 am on July 29 at the family residence on Nadapuram Road in Vadakara.

Born into a family closely associated with the cooperative, he was the son of Paleri Kanaran, while his grandfather, Paleri Chanthamman, served as the society's second president. A towering figure in Kerala's cooperative movement, Paleri had been serving as Chairman of ULCCS since 1995, leading the century-old workers' cooperative through an extraordinary phase of growth and transformation.

Under his leadership, ULCCS evolved from a regional labour cooperative into one of the world's leading cooperatives in the industrial and consumer services sector. The society was recognised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a model cooperative in 2013 and became the only primary cooperative in India to receive membership in the International Co-operative Alliance in 2019. It was also repeatedly honoured as one of the country's best cooperatives.

Paleri played a pivotal role in modernising ULCCS by introducing advanced construction technologies, promoting self-reliance, and expanding its operations across Kerala and beyond. The cooperative executed several landmark infrastructure projects, including the reconstruction of the Palarivattom Flyover and key stretches of National Highway 66 under the Bharatmala project.