Agartala, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Monday said women-led self-help groups contribute significantly to the state’s GDP, with the northeastern state producing over a lakh ‘lakpati didis’.
He said as many as 4.95 lakh rural women are associated with 55,569 self-help groups and are striving for economic independence.
Addressing a program organized by Tripura Rural Livelihood Mission at Rabindra Bhavan here, the Prime Minister said that Samriddhi 1.0 and 2.0 have been successfully implemented to empower rural women.
Saha said the government has set a disbursement target $100 crore in loans under Samriddhi 1.0, but the amount eventually increased to $188 Crores.
Likewise, target $Rs 150 crore has been identified for loan disbursement to SHGs under Samriddhi 2.0, which was later raised to $260 crores, he said.
Emphasizing that self-help groups play an important role in promoting sustainable income generation in rural areas, Saha said that the government has so far disbursed loans worth $2,398 crore for such groups.
“Initially, the bankers were skeptical about the settlement of loan proposals, but now the doubts have dissipated with the overall interest rate reaching 1.84 per cent, which is a very low level in the corporate sector. Our diodes have gained the trust of the banks,” he said.
Saha also appreciated TRLM for bringing diversity to SHG activities from farm to non-farm sector in support of the rural women empowerment movement.
“TRLM not only helps SHGs in the agriculture sector but also provides support to livelihoods in the non-agricultural sector. The state has already produced 1,08,281 ‘lakhpati didis’, which contributes significantly to the overall plan of development planning of the state,” he said.
Focusing on skill development, the Prime Minister said TRLM has already signed an agreement with IIM Kolkata Incubation Park to develop SHG businesses.
Rural Development Department Secretary Abhishek Singh and TRLM CEO TK Chakma also highlighted the steps taken to empower rural women.
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