SELF HELP GROUPS FOR WOMEN IN THE DAIRY SECTOR

Pashu Sandesh, 23 Feb 2022

Department of Animal Husbandry is implementing National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD) and Dairy Processing and Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF) for Cooperatives, Milk Producer Companies (MPC), Self Help Groups (SHG) and Farmer Producer’s Organization (FPO). The SHGs are eligible to be supported irrespective of gender. However, the Ministry of Rural Development is implementing the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods mission (DAY-NRLM) through the SHG network.

As per information received from National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), the Ministry of Finance, Government of India has set up a “Women Self Help Group Development Fund” to implement a ‘Scheme for promotion of Women SHGs in Left Wing Extremism Affected and Backward districts of India’ including dairy scheme. As of 31 December 2021, the cumulative funds released by NABARD towards grant assistance, training, capacity building and other initiatives, out of this fund, stood at ₹ 150.02 crores.

This Department provides assistance under Dairy Development schemes for creation/ strengthening /modernization of infrastructure for procurement, processing and marketing of milk & milk products for benefit of dairy farmers including women. The women member associated with the dairy sector also gets benefit under these schemes.

As per information received from MoRD, as of now, more than 81,000 women farmers are being supported under dairy value chain development interventions of the DAY-NRLM scheme with the support of the National Dairy Development Board (Dairy Services). 

Apart from the above, NABARD has informed to make the following efforts for the development of SHGs:

• NABARD has been extending grant support to partner agencies for the promotion and nurturing of SHGs, for training and capacity building of SHG members and other stakeholders besides initiating a special programme for backward regions. The domain of SHGs consists of 87.75 per cent women groups. SHGs work both in Farm and Non-Farm Sector, which includes dairy.
• Micro-Enterprise Development Programme (MEDP): NABARD has been supporting skill and entrepreneurship training to SHG members through MEDP since March 2006. Cumulatively, around 5.22 lakh SHG members, mostly women, have received training through 18,434 MEDPs as of 31 March 2021.
• Livelihood and Enterprise Development Programme (LEDPs): The livelihood and Enterprise Development Programme (LEDP) was initiated by NABARD on a pilot basis in December 2015 with a view to create sustainable livelihoods among SHG members, mostly women and to obtain optimum benefit from skill up-gradation. LEDP envisages the conduct of livelihood promotion in both farm and off-farm activities under project mode in clusters in contiguous villages. There is a provision for intensive training for skill-building, refresher training, backwards-forward linkages, handholding and escort support for credit linkage. Cumulatively 1,36,098 SHG members have been supported through 1,284 LEDP programmes up to 31 March 2021.