Ever since the Congress Government has come to power, under the leadership of Honourable Chief Minister Shri A. Revanth Reddy, it has been proved, time and again, that ‘women empowerment’ is not just an idea and doesn’t stop at ideation.
It is well-known that the Congress party has been prioritising women’s welfare over the past many decades. Take, for instance, the Stree Nidhi initiative, launched by the then Congress Chief Minister, Shri Kiran Kumar Reddy, on October 6, 2011, in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.
Stree Nidhi: Credit with dignity, powered by women
The Government’s flagship programme, Stree Nidhi provides timely and affordable credit to poor and needy members of the self-help groups (SHGs). Promoted by the government and the Mandala Samakhyas, the Stree Nidhi Credit Cooperative Federation Limited works towards supplementing the credit flow from the banking sector, as a part of the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP)’s significant, overall strategy of poverty alleviation.
Stree Nidhi helps Telangana women who are part of one of the 4,35,364 SHGs currently operating in the State. It enables SHGs and its members to obtain hassle-free credit as and when required, and ensures
- Telangana women can obtain a loan with dignity.
- Loans can be obtained via a mobile app with fewer documents and a hassle-free documentation process.
- There’s no need to borrow money from moneylenders paying a higher interest rate.
- Avoid instances of rejection of loans by banks.
- Curb exploitation by loan sharks.
- The amount is disbursed between 48 hours and 15 days depending on the need (48 hours for medical emergencies, for example).
And the best part of the Stree Nidhi initiative is –
- Credit is extended to the SHGs located in remote areas of the State within 48 hours to meet exigencies, including
- Health, children’s education, marriage
- Needs like agriculture, horticulture, dairy farming, animal husbandry, and other activities.
65 lakh women, one goal: Economic freedom through SHGs
The community-based organisations act as financial intermediary committees comprising 10-20 local women (or men). With the groups’ primary focus being financial intermediation, the SHGs serve as a platform for all its members to pool resources to meet their financial needs, especially during emergencies.
How does it work?
After the formation of the SHG, members of the group voluntarily save small amounts regularly, over the first few months, till there’s enough corpus fund in the group. After pooling together the savings of all members for about 6 months or so, the SHG will begin lending. The members can avail of the credit facility both for exigences and purchasing assets or investing in business ventures.
SHGs are the biggest platforms that empower women by —
- Helping them save money regularly
- Providing them access to savings
- Enabling them to avail of credit facilities
- Helping the women become economically independent, gain confidence, and improve their status at home and in society
The SHGs encourage collective decision-making, facilitate training (as and when needed), and conduct activities to increase social awareness. At present, there are over 65 lakh SHG members in 4,35,364 SHGs organised into 18,397 village organisations (VOs), 554 mandal samakhyas (MSs) and 30 zilla samakhyas (ZSs).
Transforming daily lives with Mahalakshmi Scheme
Fulfilling the promise made in its election manifesto, the Congress government formally rolled out the Mahalakshmi scheme on December 9, 2023.
The scheme offers inclusive benefits to all women from BPL card families, irrespective of their caste or religion, allowing them free access to advantages.
- As part of the initiative, every woman who is a resident of Telangana and holds a BPL card along with a gas connection receipt was brought under the scheme. Now, women can get gas cylinders (@ one cylinder per family) at a subsidised price of Rs. 500 each.
- Under this scheme, the Congress government enables women to avail of free bus travel for women, girls, and transgenders in all Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) buses across Telangana, by simply showing their Aadhaar Card. This helps women not only travel freely and confidently across the State but also become a vital part of the workforce and social activities wherever required.
Indiramma Mahila Shakti: Envisaging a shift in development paradigm
To empower the SHGs, and thereby women in the State, through different livelihood activities, the Telangana Congress Government has announced ‘Indiramma Mahila Shakti’ policy. Under this initiative, the government “envisages a shift in the development paradigm of the SHG movement”.
- The vibrant network of women’s self-help groups in rural and urban areas has around 65 lakh members.
- This large women’s network with its established, tried-and-tested eco-system of financial inclusion is a huge strength for the State.
- Realising the huge potential for opening many avenues with multiple activities, the State government aims to help SHGs become dynamic community-based organisations (CBOs) and “centres of economic empowerment through livelihood initiatives and wealth creation”.
- The Congress government focuses on leveraging Rs. 1 lakh crore bank loan linkage to SHGs and Rs. 25,000 crore exclusively for small businesses and enterprises.
- Under the Mahila Shakti activities, the government also envisages empowering women members of SHGs through micro-enterprises development in the next five years, by providing support to SHGs for:
- Amma Adarsha Patashala Committees
- Rs. 1 lakh crore financial linkage to SHGs as per their choice in next 5 years
- Rs. 2 lakh (max.) Loan Bheema
- Vaddi Leni Runalu (VLR) to SHGs on bank and Stree Nidhi loans
- Potential partnership with technical support agencies (TSAs) and institutions
- Support to SHGs in skill development trainings as per their choice
- Rs. 10 lakh group accidental insurance to all SHG members
- Branding, packaging and marketing for SHG products
- Establishment of common processing centres
- Development of support system
- Coverage of eligible women from rural areas into SHGs
- Dedicated support cell (PMU) at SERP
- Mini Industrial Park at every Assembly constituency