Spearheading empowerment of rural women in Una

Rajesh Sharma

Swan Women Federation (SWF), an umbrella organisation for over 650 self-help groups (SHGs) having a total membership of about 10,000 women in Una district, is the biggest organised collective of rural women in Himachal Pradesh and has been working towards the empowerment of rural women for the last about three years.

The journey began in 2013, when the Swan River Integrated Watershed Management Project was being implemented by the Forest Department in Una district with funding from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Rs 200 crore project was aimed at treating the catchment areas of the Swan river to increase soil fertility, check soil erosion, recharge ground water aquifer and increase vegetative cover. Structures like check dams were also created to retain rain water and to use some part of it for irrigation. Women SHGs were formed to manage the structures.

 Since the project was to close in March 2015, it was decided to federate the then existing 423 SHGs into a society, which would ensure the continuity of the project objectives. To achieve this, a democratic process of four-tier elections, starting from the SHG, panchayat, cluster and apex levels was held.

Subhadra Devi from Dharampur was elected the chairperson, Meenu Rana from Ajnoli the president and Anuranjana from Satothar as the vice-president. The SWF thus came into being in March 2014 with the legal status of a Society. Subhadra Devi said ‘the project closed in March 2015 and with that, all financial and technical support stopped. It was now left to the federation to keep the organisation alive and moving’. 

Subhadra said they were glad that some of the social staff of the JICA project gave free services for a year to the federation in expanding its scope and today, the organisation supports 652 SHGs in 73 panchayats of the district with a total membership of over 10,000 rural women. She said SHGs are given support in micro credit and micro savings, procurement of farm produce, value addition and marketing of produce, entrepreneurship and livelihood support besides a gamut of additional activities.

Meenu Rana said the federation office-bearers meet regularly to discuss problems and opportunities that come from the field, adding that two main areas needed to be addressed initially. First, the women were facing problems in dealing with banks where they had opened their group accounts. ‘Rural women need small credits for purchase of cattle, repair the cattle sheds, pursuing children’s academics, to deal with a health issue in the family, to support the husband’s loss in business and the like, adding that since women do not own land and property, the banks simply refuse them loans.

To counter this, the federation took a decision to start its own cooperative. On November 30, 2015, the Swan Women (Multipurpose) Cooperative Society was registered and the accounts of all SHGs were opened at its new office in Una city. Society secretary Sunita Sharma said in a short span of three years, the society has assets worth Rs 7.79 crore with all 652 SHGs having savings and credit accounts in it. She said group loans amounting to about Rs 2 crore have been given so far, which are promptly being repaid by women.

“Members get easy loans within one or two days since we only need a resolution from the SHG,” the secretary said, adding that the group stands guarantee for the member. Besides, she said in the society, interest on deposits to the members is more, while for loans, it is less as compared to the bank interest rates. Women associated with the federation now have greater access to finances and can take decisions on their own for the betterment of their family, she said. 

Anuranjana said the federation once facilitated women in cultivating turmeric, a crop which is not destroyed by wild animals. The harvest, that came pouring in, prompted the federation to set up a spice processing unit in Badheda village on land leased by the panchayat. She said after the mandatory certifications and licensing, the ‘Swan Spices’ unit came into existence. Raw turmeric is procured from SHG members at an additional premium of Rs 2 per kg.

Coriander powder, red chilli powder and Indian mixed spices powder have been added to the inventory, said unit manager Chinder Pal. “Latest automated equipment and best food grade packing material is being used,” he said, adding: “Purity is guaranteed because women are involved in every step from sowing the produce to packaging and distribution.”

Ritu Sharma, the executive officer-in-charge of the SHG sustainability cell, said Swan spices have become popular, registering a sale of Rs 60 lakh in two years. She said: “SHG members get spices at subsidised rates. The spices are now gaining ground in schools and anganwari centres for mid-day meals, in popular hotels and dhabas and are also sold in fair-price shops and other retail outlets. Pickles are now the latest addition to the inventory of products, which is fast picking up.” 

Honorary Chief Executive Officer of the federation RK Dogra said additional activities such as bulk procurement of household items and agriculture inputs from manufacturers and government agencies are done and provided to SHGs on demand basis, saving money and time besides ensuring good quality products to members. He said scholarship to daughters of SHG members, free health camps and distribution of kitchen garden and fodder seed kits twice a year to enhance family nutrition were also in place.

“The success of the Swan Women Federation, particularly its growth after the exit of the Watershed Project is now a case study for JICA and state government. Teams from JICA keep visiting the federation and documenting the reasons of its success,” said Dogra. Last year, the Himachal Pradesh Crop Diversification Promotion Project, another ongoing JICA project with its head office in Hamirpur and implementing its objectives in five districts, needed to federate their 20,000 strong farmer family base. The task was entrusted to Swan Women Federation.

“We took up the challenge and with the dedicated participation of our staff, who undertook a series of 550 meetings in remote corners of the state from village to state level, it took one whole year to create the Himachal Pradesh Kisan Vikas Federation of the HPCDP Project,” recalls Subhadra Devi, adding that they were proud of the fact that the success of the Swan Women Federation was gradually being recognised in the region.