Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government will groom nearly 3 million rural women associated with self-help groups (SHGs) as micro agri-preneurs, a move the state hopes would increase their annual income to at least Rs 1 lakh in the next three years.
The development comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day speech where he lauded the SHGs and said his dream was to make 20 million “lakhpati Didis”.
The UP State Rural Livelihood Mission, in line with the National Rural Livelihood Mission, is drafting a detailed road map to take the agenda forward.
Earlier, the state’s plan was to include 1.5 million women SHG members under the scheme. According to sources, nearly a million women SHG members in the state now have an annual income of more than Rs 1 lakh.
“Now, the plan is to augment the income of additional 2 million women SHG members to more than Rs 1 lakh in the next three years,” a senior government official said.
UP women SHGs comprising 60,000 members were engaged in growing improved varieties of sugarcane seeds after the first wave of pandemic.
Various agricultural and allied activities covered under the micro agri-preneur road map include farming, rural banking correspondents, take-home ration (THR) units, goat rearing, poultry, dairy, farmer producer organisation (FPO), livestock, fisheries, and forest produce collection.
The state will also facilitate women self-employment by setting up agri-based micro enterprises to increase farm income and rural empowerment. During the pandemic, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had lauded the women SHGs for their support in manufacturing and distributing personal protective equipment kits, masks, school uniforms, etc.
