Kozhikode: Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society (ULCCS) Chairman Remeshan Palery passed away on Tuesday morning while undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Coimbatore. He was 66.
A prominent figure in Kerala’s cooperative movement, Palery spent more than three decades in the leadership of ULCCS and was widely credited with transforming the organisation from a local labour collective into one of Asia’s largest labour cooperatives.
His mortal remains will be kept at UL Cyber Park in Thondayad, Kozhikode, on Tuesday afternoon for the public to pay their respects before being taken to Vadakara.
Three Decades at the Helm
Palery became chairman of ULCCS in 1995 at the age of 35. During his tenure, he led major organisational reforms, expanded the society’s operations and strengthened its administrative systems.
Under his leadership, ULCCS diversified beyond conventional infrastructure projects into sectors such as education, skill development, employment generation and social welfare. The cooperative also emerged as a major infrastructure developer in Kerala, executing road, bridge and building projects while expanding its workforce and labour welfare initiatives.
One of Palery’s landmark initiatives was the establishment of UL Cyber Park, Malabar’s first IT Special Economic Zone, developed with an investment of ₹600 crore. During his leadership, ULCCS’s annual turnover reportedly grew from ₹1.6 crore to ₹1,610 crore, according to figures released by the organisation.
Awards and Public Infrastructure Role
Over the course of his career, Palery received several honours, including the Robert Owen Award, the M. Bhaskaran Memorial Cooperative Excellence Award, the Global Kadathanadan Award and the NHAI Best Performer Award.
ULCCS has played a significant role in Kerala’s public infrastructure sector as an accredited implementing agency for government projects, executing several major road, bridge and building works across the state.
The organisation has also been the subject of political debate. During the previous Left Democratic Front (LDF) government, opposition leaders questioned the allocation of public works to accredited agencies such as ULCCS without competitive tenders in several instances.
More recently, the United Democratic Front (UDF) government extended the accreditation of agencies involved in public works, including ULCCS, until July 31, 2026, a decision that also attracted political attention. Earlier, while in opposition, senior UDF leaders, including V.D. Satheesan and K.C. Venugopal, had criticised what they described as preferential treatment extended to ULCCS under the previous LDF administration.
Palery’s leadership and vision were instrumental in expanding ULCCS into one of the country’s most prominent labour cooperatives, leaving a lasting impact on Kerala’s cooperative and infrastructure sectors.
