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Lending a helping hand

The YMCA Rural Development Centre has provided a lifeline to many women

PHOTO S. MAHINSHA

GOOD MARKET The SHG stall on the YMCA campus offers products ranging from agricultural products and home made pickles to candles Photo S. Mahinsha

Inside the YMCA campus in Thiruvananthapuram, an interesting sight draws one's attention: A little stall with bunches of bananas, tender coconuts and much more.

A little over a month old, the stall, which is promoted by the YMCA Rural Development Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, is already proving to be popular with visitors. The products on offer at the stall - ranging from agricultural products and homemade pickles to candles - are all produced by women's self-help groups (SHGs) based in Aruvikkara near the city.

Training for women

A majority of the SHGs that supply produce to the stall are affiliated to the YMCA Rural Development Centre in Aruvikkara. YMCA Thiruvananthapuram launched the Centre in 1974 as part of its centenary celebrations, says Thomas Abraham, general secretary of the YMCA, Thiruvananthapuram. The Centre provides training to poor families in scientific agricultural methods, he adds. Seedlings of coconut, pepper and arecanut are also issued to them on a no-profit basis.

The YMCA launched a similar project in 1986 in Vettinad near Kottarakkara where vocational training is given to boys and girls. Vettinad also has four women's SHGs, besides a boys' home that houses children from destitute and broken families. The members of the SHGs in Aruvikkara are mostly the only breadwinners of their families.

Actively engaged in candle making, manufacture of soap, incense and so on, some women have even established their own tailoring units. However, Abraham says that the SHG members are not getting a good market for their products: "We thought of providing a sales counter here in YMCA as SHG members were not getting good prices," he explains.

Undoubtedly, the sales counter comes as a boon for individuals like Sandhya who has been with the SHGs in Aruvikkara for some years. Now managing the stall, Sandhya is all smiles as she says, "Each day, the response is getting better." Cutting open a tender coconut for an eager customer, she adds that the demand is for tender coconuts and the organically cultivated bananas.

Priced at Rs. 8, well below the market rate, the tender coconuts are selling quickly. Another attraction is the washing soap made from coconut oil. The soap is also free from harmful chemicals, claims Sandhya. In order to cater to customer demands, the stall will soon introduce more items, says Abraham.

Next on the YMCA's rural development agenda is more vocational training for women, says Abraham. For the countless rural women toiling to feed their families, there could be no better news.

ANUPAMA R

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