From village self-help group to ‘lakhpati didi’: how Bathinda native Rupinder Kaur’s initiative changed many women’s lives

Lakhpati Didi is simply a strategy implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development that aims to empower women by helping them to commencement micro enterprises. It provides involvement subvention, loans, fiscal enactment and truthful on.

Kaur’s SHG was established with the enactment of HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited’s (HMEL) Guru Gobind Singh Refinery successful Bathinda. Her travel began successful 2018 erstwhile she joined HMEL and formed the Gyan Self-Help Group by gathering women from her village. After receiving training, they acceptable up a bag-stitching portion and began to work.

“Just arsenic we began operations successful 2020, however, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, creating a setback. But we got an bid to manufacture bags for authorities schools which boosted our confidence,” she recalls.

Since then, Kaur and her radical person ne'er looked back. “Today, we person earned Rs 11 lakh by stitching bags. Our products are successful request not lone successful Punjab but successful Haryana arsenic good truthful we marque the bags based connected orders,” she told The Indian Express.

While Kaur has studied till Class 12, the different six members successful her radical person lone passed matriculation. Now their SHG functions retired of rented premises successful their colony and sells products, including question bags and tiffin bags, connected retail arsenic well.

HMEL has established 491 SHGs successful 59 villages astir Guru Gobind Singh Refinery, empowering implicit 5,000 agrarian women.

At the petition of the not-for-profit Hand successful Hand India (HIH), Kaur besides trained different women successful her colony successful bag-making, helping them go self-reliant too. Four much bag-stitching groups person since been acceptable up successful Pakka Kalan with implicit 40 women progressive successful the business.

“Each subordinate of these groups present earns astir Rs 15,000 per month, allowing them to enactment their children’s acquisition and lend to household expenses alongside their husbands,” Kaur adds, hoping that her communicative would service arsenic an inspiration for others.

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