3 minute read
No. of WLFs audited 506
Cleansed of Poverty
Advertisement
Ballari district experiences very high temperatures but is also witnessing a pleasant development, with a surge of women willing to learn new skills and work hard to become self employed and successful. Uma Shanbhogar is one such woman who has found a new direction in life, after joining a Sanjeevini self help group.
“We are now leading a more fruitful life and are free from poverty. I have experienced success and my desire is for every woman to lead a self sufficient life, just like me”, says Uma, who has become a role model in the village.
Uma Shanbhogar is the chief breadwinner in a financially backward family in Uttangi village. She used to run a petty store, but as it barely made ends meet, she needed to look for another source of income.
one day, she remembered Sanjeevini's self employment scheme which was introduced at the weekly meeting of the Sri Siddeshwara self help group by the Master Community Resource Person. When the Swacch Bharat Abhiyaan was launched in 2014, Uma noticed that the demand for phenyl went up significantly in the rural areas and she decided to capitalize on this by starting a phenyl making unit. With savings of Rs.14,500 and borrowings from the SHG, she was able to finance the phenyl unit. She sought the help of the Sanjeevini non-farm team to help her in packaging, marketing and maintaining quality standards. The team sent her various videos to help her learning, and also helped her sell phenyl on various online and offline platforms . With several such assistance from Sanjeevini, Uma is now able to earn Rs.5000 each month. She is able to provide for her family and there is a substantial improvement in their living standard. She is also helping other women to learn to manufacture phenyl and is educating them about livelihood activities.
Colourful Path
Be they ever so humble, it’s natural for human beings to adorn themselves. Providing colourful bangles to women of her village has been the path to sustainable livelihood for this woman in Ballari district, with Sanjeevini’s help.
“The bangle business has changed my life; our finacial and social status has improved”, says Hasanabhi.
Hasanabhi, of Bagali gram panchayat in Harapanahalli taluk in Ballari district, used to work as a daily wager along with her husband Abdul Saab, but their combined earnings were not sufficient to run the family. The Sanjeevini NRLM programme provided a lifeline to her family when Hasanabhi became a member of Sri Sanjeevini SHG under the Sri Banashankari Ward Level Federation.
Realising that life could be better, she reached out for services provided by the programme. By saving Rs.100 each month, she accumulated Rs.3,000 and approached the Sanjeevini team with a plan to become a bangle seller. The financial inclusion team helped her secure a loan of Rs.25,000 from the community investment fund; this combined with her savings was enough for her to start a small business of selling bangles. Soon, she began earning Rs.5,000 a month and has also been able to repay the loan. She intends to expand her business by opening up a fancy store in the village, with Sanjeevini’s help . Apart from running her business, Hasanabhi also serves as the president of the WLF and encourages SHGs to make optimum use of CIF made available to them. She guides and trains women in using the funds, and has become a role model to the women in her village and surrounding villages as well .
