ROURKELA: The Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) has launched a cold storage project with an aim to ensure sustainable income for women vegetable vendors by checking distress sale and cutting down waste. The project, a part of the Championship Phase of 2021 Global Mayors Challenge of Bloomberg Philanthropies, is being managed by a women self-help group (SHG).
Rourkela had made it to 50 champion cities across the globe in June this year on the basis of this project which envisaged to provide around 700 street vendors selling vegetables and fruits, mostly women, with solar-power cold storage units to reduce waste and electric vehicles for distribution. The project also aimed to promote women entrepreneurship.
RMC’s external partner Koel Fresh Pvt Ltd (KFPL) is leading the project which) has been started on a pilot basis at Chhend Colony with a 10-tonne cold storage facility. Chief executive officer of KFPL Ashutosh Nayak said a woman SHG was provided training and engaged to run the project. So far, 230 women vendors have registered and 40 have started availing the facility.
Vegetables are perishable goods and local vendors and farmers sell around 30 per cent of their unsold stock at throwaway prices fearing damage. The safe storage would prevent wastage and eventually enhance their earning, Nayak said adding, the registered vendors have also authorised the SHG to sell their stocks to eateries and restaurants at the best price.
“If everything goes as per plan, solar-powered cold storage facilities would be set up at 10 locations in the city. A project implementation report would be submitted by October 31. We hope the project will help us get into the final 15 winners,” he added. Each winner will be entitled to one million US dollars and multi-year technical assistance to implement and scale their respective projects. RMC Commissioner Dibyajyoti Parida said the project is in line with the sustainable development goals.