Women self-help groups vital for rural economy growth: CM

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, September 25

Women self-help groups can help in bringing economic prosperity in rural areas of the state. Many policy decisions have been taken to convert villages to centres of economic activities.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat stated this while inaugurating the weekly ‘Women Haat’ under “Mukhyamantri Mahila Swayam Sahayta Samuh Sashtikaran Yojana” at Vikas Bhawan here on Sunday.

Rawat said the state government was making efforts to connect the rural economy with urban economy and for this purpose, more such weekly markets had to be started.

The Chief Minister said many women self help groups were working well and others needed to take inspiration from them.

Under the initiative, instructions had been given to organise weekly women haat in every district so that rural products could be made available in cities, he said.

A bank account with initial amount of Rs 5,000 for every woman self help group was being opened by the state government and Rs 20,000 would be provided to the active women self help groups. Apart from this, Rs 1 lakh as grant would be provided to the Mahila Mangal Dal or women self help groups that are involved in community farming on land taken on lease, Rawat said.

He congratulated Principal Secretary Manisha Pawar and Chief Development Officer, Dehradun, Alok Kumar Pandey for starting the weekly rural haat in Dehradun. Rawat said initiatives taken for empowering self help groups by the Chief Development Officers should be included in their ACR. He also called upon the officials to propagate and encourage weekly women haats.

He hoped that the concept of weekly women haat would get popularity gradually. The Chief Minister went to every stall and talked to the women about their products.