SGSY and Self Help groups in Kanyakumari

Rural poor are getting organised in Kanyakumari district. There are 7000 Self help Groups in the district, involved in a variety of income generating programmes. Myths are being proved wrong, that the rural poor can not save. They have together saved more than Rs.3.5 crores, the immediate credit needs are being met, not from money lenders, but from their own savings. Rural products from the district, including handicrafts comes to Rs. 20 crores a year. One single craft, banana fibre comes to Rs. 2 crores a year. The product range is vast. Rural women can now complete their household work and also earn an income sitting at home. More than thirty crafts are being made use of in handicrafts alone.

After the launch of the Swarnjayanthi Gram Swarojgar Yojana large number of groups have accessed Revolving Funds, with a subsidy from government and another bank loan component Rural unorganised women are now making use of formal banking sector, accessing credit, managing their own units Training is given in various essential areas of management, new technologies are introduced, programmes constantly monitored .Most of the activities are taken up as cluster activities, more than one person involved in the work, giving the participants better mutual, and external support . One of the areas doing well in the district is Kattimankode Panchayat. Here the local Panchayat, NGOs, banks and the government agencies have come together making the SHGs viable production units and credit agencies.

There are various activity clusters here, Agarbatti, Palm Fibre Brushes, Tapioca products, Coconut Leaf Thatch, tamarind processing are among the many activities . Panchayat has a population of 6585 people and almost half of them from Below Poverty Line families. This Panchayat has a total of 92 SHGs. In one village Sreekrishnapuram there are four activities giving meaningful employment to the local women The SHGs namely Thulasi, Nagapushpam, Parijatham and Marikulunthu, attached to a local NGO Nala Oli have all received revolving funds of Rs. 25,000 each. They are now poised to take economic assistance for their own independent units, of Rs. 1.5 lakhs.

Another village in the same Panchayat, Cheruppankode, processes tamarind, linked to the NGO Malar they are able to get Rs. 25 to 30 per day using their spare time. At Arasarkonam the women make palm fibre brush earning a reasonable income. Here again they are now able to do the work better with the subsidy cum loan component given under SGSY. The local banks, Primary Agricultural Cooperative Bank and the Central Bank of India have advanced to loans, DRDA has been the motivating force. The local Panchayat President taking an active interest.

Out of the 92 groups, 34 have received revolving funds and more are in the process, many of them are also to get the economic assistance for their own production units. The women are now empowered to take on their problems Kattimankode is only one of the many Panchayats in Kanyakumari heading for progress, from local resources and skills.