“When women are empowered and can claim their rights and access to land, leadership, opportunities and choices, economies grow, food security is enhanced and prospects are improved for current and future generations.”
– Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women
Bhubaneswar: History is witness to the fact that throughout civilizations, women played the paramount role in the social and economic development of the society. The more independent and active the women, the more progressive has been the society. This fact also holds true even today when we see some of the developed nations and societies. Throughout history, the pivotal role of women in society has ensured stability, progress and long-term development of nations.
In a country like India, the role of women occupies a significant place in the development of the family and the society at large. The changing characteristics of Indian society with a mix of rural and urban order depend much on the women folk. In each and every sphere, be it economy, education, health or welfare, women are at the center and deserve the best of the encouragement so that there is all round development. State sponsorship to various encouragement programs of women plays an important role in women empowerment.
In India, there are a few programs which deserve to be discussed and debated for their contribution to women empowerment and thereby social change. One such initiative is the flagship program of the Government of Odisha, Mission Shakti that has become a revolution in the state.
Mission Shakti has shown the world that successful women empowerment has the trickle down impact on the economy, livelihood, social development, healthcare and education of the state. The state has the distinction of having more than 70 lakh self help group (SHG) members sponsored by Mission Shakti – the nodal agency of the Government of Odisha. From a humble beginning in the year 2001, Mission Shakti today has become a force to be reckoned with. After nearly two decades, the humble beginning has become a revolution today and brought under its ambit more than 7 million women. This flagship programme of the government of Odisha for women empowerment has successfully achieved its goal of empowering the women of the state. Mission Shakti, with its multi pronged approach to the strategies for making women self sufficient has been able to improve the economic condition of lakhs of families and thereby the state’s economy also.
It is said that necessity is the mother of invention. At a time when the state was in an economic crisis and there were financial chaos everywhere after the Super Cyclone hit Odisha, the people required a direction and Mission Shakti fulfilled the same.
The keen involvement of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on issues related to women development has helped Mission Shakti progress so far. He has been proactive in providing all help to the development of women folk in the state. Mission Shakti member SHGs today have diversified their ambit of efforts and are today contributing in many ways. From running midday meal kitchens in schools to procuring paddy from farmers, they have been successfully playing an important role in giving a sustainable livelihood to the members. Today, the Self Help Groups are engaged in making handicrafts, handloom, food products, electricity billing, collection of water bills, stitching school uniforms, manufacturing sanitary pads and many more such things that have made them economically strong.
The critical difference between the SHG movements in other states compared to Odisha is their involvement in government programs. Leading from the front, Odisha Cabinet in its first meeting on May 29th 2019 took a decision to procure 5000 crore worth of Government goods and services from SHGs in a period of 5 years. This reflects the strong political will in empowering women and not just big slogans. Earlier, Chief Minister had sanctioned loans to the members of the group at one percent interest and smart phones to about six lakh Mission Shakti groups in the state in order to make them digital savvy. The SHGs are also being with interest-free loans of up to Rs 3 lakh. This provides a huge boost to women’s enterprises and financial inclusion as the interest subvention is based on prompt repayment. This year the Government has a budget of Rs 100 crore for this and is set to scale it up in the coming years.
As a result of which, MOUs were signed with different departments on a variety of issues, capacity building was taken up on a large scale and actual work was transferred to SHGs with clear guidelines. From electricity meter reading to pisciculture in Panchayat tanks, from diet provision in PHCs to paddy procurement, THR production and provision of MDM, many activities of the Government have been outsourced to women SHGs. Apart from providing them a sustainable source of income, these also give women a role in public spaces as they now deal with Government machinery, consumers and learn to manage enterprises.
For the first time this year, the Mission Shakti Mela was held in Bhubaneswar showcasing products from all over the State. It was a big hit and is being followed up by the setting up of a permanent Mission Shakti Haat in Bhubaneswar and other prominent towns of the State.
Though the exact extend is yet to be calculated, the Self Help Groups are also contributing to the economy of the state in an important way. The supplementary credit delivery mechanism has become sustainable and their economic condition has improved manifolds. Today, the Self Help Groups constitute an important medium of savings for the rural banking sector. They have a savings of Rs 5000 crore and Rs 2000 crore annual bank exposer, a fact that cannot be ignored.
According to Sujata Kathikeyan, Director, Mission Shakti “Money in the hands of women has a far greater impact on the financial condition of the families than money in the hands of men,”. “Industrialisation does boost the state economy, but the micro economy has to be boosted with the help of women. A principle inspired from Mahatma Gandhi.”
To manage the huge affairs of the Mission Shakti a dedicated office was required and which was fulfilled with the setting up of the Directorate of Mission Shakti and hosed in Mission Shakti Bhawan in Bhubaneswar. In order to bring in more transparency and accountability in the working of the department, it has been brought under the ambit of Mo Sarkar initiative.
The importance given to the growth of Self Help Group movement by the Chief Minister can be understood from the fact that Pramila Bisoyi, a grasroots level SHG leader, was chosen by him to represent the lakhs of SHG members in the Parliament. She has been elected to the Lok Sabha from Aska Parliamentary constituency.
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