"The women of Odisha will lead the way in women empowerment in India”, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had proclaimed while launching the Mission Shakti programme on March 8, 2001.It was the first major programme to be launched by Naveen Patnaik only a year after assuming office of the Chief Minister of Odisha for the very first time. Looking back, after two decades, the results are for all to see. Mission Shakti, envisaged to empower women by providing them livelihood earning opportunities through organised self-help groups (SHGs), has steered a silent economic revolution, scripting a transformation story that has touched lives of more than half the population of the State.
Odisha today has 70 lakh women organised into six lakh SHGs covering all habitations. The social and economic transformation of women from the poorest of the poor families in the rural and remote areas is the greatest success story that the programme has achieved. What started as an attempt to make women generate their own small savings and contribute to the family income in times of need has turned into an entrepreneurship model that has elevated women from their subservient existence to having economic independence and equal status both in the family and the society. The successful management and functioning of microenterprises have brought women to the forefront, empowering them to shoulder responsibilities hitherto considered beyond their capabilities and have equal say in decision making at every level.
Case studies
The stories are all-pervasive. In the remote and inaccessible hills of Malkangiri, women from the primitive Bonda tribe are engaged in commercial enterprise of making and marketing brooms made of hill broom grass, found abundantly in the district. They have annual turnover of Rs 6 lakh. Closer to the mainland in the steel city of Rourkela, a women’s SHG Dibyajyoti at Jhirpani village is involved in a more modern enterprise as bakery. Their cookies, cakes, pastries and muffins are in huge demand in the city so much so that they have become an established brand with a turnover of `15 lakh per year.
The SHGs today are involved in diverse activities from producing and packaging spices, pickles and ready to eat food to manufacturing utensils, craft and appliances to manufacturing LED bulbs, running buses under Biju Gaon Gadi, supplying THR under ICDS programme, electricity metre reading, civil construction and managing public utilities, etc.Inclusive growthThe decision of the Government on convergence of Mission Shakti with different departments for provisioning of Government services and procurement through SHGs has opened up wider possibilities of inclusive growth with women empowerment. In its first meeting on May 29, 2019 after Naveen’s return to power for the fifth consecutive time, the Cabinet approved a proposal to tie up WSHGs with different departments for provisioning of government services and procurement in a structured manner amounting to `5,000 crore over five years.
The Government has transferred several functions of 10 departments to be implemented by the WSHGs. They include supply of pre-school uniforms in AWCs, paddy procurement operations, appointment of WSHGs as fair price shop dealers under the public distribution system (PDS), engagement as seed dealers of OSSC, small nursery management, bee keeping, supply of raagi ladoos under ICDS programme, preparation and supply of midday meals, engagement in electric meter reading and bill collections in villages across the state, conservation of existing forest and restoration of degraded forest, Ama Jangal Yojana, processing and value addition to the available NTPF items, running of urban local bodies, PDS distribution in urban areas, pisciculture in gram panchayat tanks, supply of hospital diets, sanitary napkins and mosquito nets and routine maintenance of 10,000 km of rural roads.
Jump in turnover
Following department convergence and expansion of SHG activities this year, the turnover of the groups cumulatively till October 2019 has been a whopping `261.84 crore. Taking to electricity metre reading, billing and collection of charges on pilot basis, the Maa Tarini SHG of Daspalla inNayagarh district has already notched a turnover of Rs 90 lakh. Another SHG Jyoti Mission Shakti BLF of Banapur, Khurda, has taken up stitching of school uniforms in convergence with School and Mass Education department and have earned Rs 12 lakh this year. Cases like the above abound all across the State.
Handing the responsibility of electricity metre reading, billing and collection of electricity charges in rural areas will bring a paradigm shift in the functional efficiency in the power sector, particularly Discoms, that are hamstrung by poor realisation of domestic consumer dues. As many as 731 WSHGs are engaged in different gram panchayats and it has increased collection of bills, checked meter tampering and ensured transparency in entire persons. This convergence has become such a success that WSHGs have become contact persons in villages to take care of power outages.
Deep impact
Describing the Government’s tie up with WSHGs, Commissioner-cum-Director, Mission Shakti, Sujata Kartikeyan said that the impact has been deep. “The aim is to bring women out of their homes and make them active participants in the development process, to empower them in the true sense. Besides, money in the hands of women is always better than money in the hands of men because women will always spend it on education, health and family,” she said.
Kartikeyan said by transfer of different functions, the Government is creating public space for women to directly participate in the development process without confining them to their homes. “They are now going to offices, meeting different persons in the course of their work which gives them confidence and an identity,” she said and added that this also gives rise to leadership qualities in them.
One of the shining examples of convergence is preparation of Take Home Ration (THR) for supply to pregnant and nursing mothers and children up to three years along with severely underweight children up to six years under ICDS programme. The THR food mix of wheat, ground nut, gram and sugar is made by 661 SHGs and reaches to over 25.63 lakh beneficiaries. This unique model of Odisha to combat malnutrition has not only been very effective on ground but also brought earning to the tune of Rs 500 crore per year for the SHGs.
The decision to delegate preparation and distribution of mid-day meal (MDM) in schools to SHGs has ensured quality and freed teachers for additional responsibilities so that they can concentrate on teaching. Now, 14,719 WSHGs are actively engaged in the MDM programme.With the outsourcing of Government services and procurement to SHGs, focus is now on strengthening Block Level Federations (BLF) further. The BLFs promote entrepreneurship and aggregate marketing among women SHGs and develop and strengthen the network in the block, thereby contributing to sustainability of member SHGs. Each of the 338 BLFs will be provided with revolving fund of Rs 25 lakh. Strengthening of banking link and formation of producers’ groups are also in the pipeline to boost marketing of SHGs products in national and international markets. Besides, tie up with Flipkart and other web marketing agencies are also being contemplated.
Future plan
Encouraged by the success of Mission Shakti Mela, a decision has also been taken to set up a permanent bazaar like Delhi Haat in Bhubaneswar. Land has already been identified for the bazaar.Similarly, pisciculture in gram panchayat tanks by women SHGs has been undertaken across the state in convergence with directorate of fisheries. Under this programme, WSHGs are given priority for lease of GP tank on long term basis. As many as 3710 GP tanks covering an area of 1474 hectares have been leased out to WSHGs. Fish worth Rs 13.96 crore has already been harvested in 1396 GP tanks during the current financial year.
Paddy procurement operations involving WSHGs has been successfully piloted in 17 gram panchayats of Kalahandi district. Paddy was procured by WSHGs in RMC market yards/mandis under Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation (OSCSC). The SHGs were imparted training on procurement of paddy using the digital platform known as paddy-procurement automation system (P-PAS). About 24,71,96 quintals of paddy were procured in the Rabi crop in Kalahandi district resulting in a turnover of Rs 43.26 crore with commission earned by WSHGs at Rs 77.25 lakh, an average of Rs 4.5 lakh per group.
The district-level federation of WSHGs in Koraput district is presently engaged in hospital diet management in Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital generating a revenue of Rs 48 lakh. Director, Mission Shakti said WSHG members are given proper training before they are given these jobs.
power of numbers
70 lakh women organised in 6 lakh SHGs cover all habitations
Govt has transferred several functions of 10 departments to be implemented by WSHGs, including maintenance of 10K rural roads
261.84 cr turnover till October after convergence of Government departments with WSHGs and expansion of SHG activities
731 WSHGs engaged in different GPs in electricity jobs which has enhanced collection of bills, checked meter tampering and ensured transparency in entire persons
500 cr turnover of WSHGs for preparing Take Home Ration for pregnant and nursing mothers and children up to three years
THR is prepared by 661 SHGs for over 25.63 lakh beneficiaries
14,719 WSHGs are actively engaged in the MDM programme