Realizing the immense power of unity, women of Chhattisgarh have united to take development of state to another level. Women here have joined hands to form self-help groups and work for their socio-economic development. Almost every city every village of Chhattisgarh has witnessed the growth and success of such self-help groups. Every market is state is decked up with the products manufactured by them. These women have become financially independent through income-oriented activities such as manufacturing pickles, badi-papad, chhattisgarhi cuisine, mushroom production, fishery, sericulture, sanitary manufacturing, bamboo and wooden art etc. More than 80 thousand women groups have been formed under Women and Child Development Department and other departments of Chhattisgarh Government.
State Government has always encouraged women to come together as group and engage in income-oriented activities. These groups have been made aware of women’s right through various government schemes. In Bastar, Koriya, Jashpur, Janjgir-Champa and other districts of state, women groups have taken up the task of school uniform stitching on a large scale. In Jashpur district, District Administration established hi-tech stitching centre in District Headquarters Jashpur in May 2014, under Integrated Action Plan. In this centre, women groups are provided training in garment stitching. Presently, total 70 women in six self-help groups are engaged in women garments industry. More than a thousand women have been trained at this centre. In year 2014-15, these women groups of Jashpur had stitched school dresses worth nearly one lakh 70 thousand in only 45 days. This included five thousand shirts, one thousand 970 pants and three thousand 434 tunics. In current year 2015-16 also, order of stitching school uniforms worth Rs 32 thousand by Tribal Development Department and order of stitching school uniforms worth nearly Rs 72 thousand has been entrusted to women groups only.Likewise, women self-help groups in Koriya district are also successfully engaged in cottage industry.
One can envisage the success of women self-help groups by the expanding area of their work. These groups are no more confined to stitching-embroidery. Today, nearly 2634 women self-help groups are actively manufacturing and distributing nutritious supplement food to more than 26 lakh beneficiaries of 50 thousand aanganbadis and mini-aanganbadi centres in state. Moreover, the work of preparing and distributing breakfast and hot-cooked meal to nearly nine lakh children of age-group 3-6 years at these centres have been entrusted to more than 21 thousand women self-help groups. Women self-help groups are also involved in preparation of midday meal in more than 47 thousand schools under School Education Department.
Women groups are successfully operating two thousand 432 fair price shops opened under Public Distribution System of Food Department. Women of state have become more aware towards their social responsibilities. They have started actively participating in the social awareness campaigns related to deaddiction, malnutrition eradication, girl child education and other social causes. Socio-economic empowerment of women is a matter of pride for Chhattisgarh.