What a Mahila Samakhya can do in addition to distributing loans and collecting the loan amount? At several places they are doing wonders like successfully running small businesses.
Here is a Mahila Samakhya which thought innovative and implemented it last year. Now it was moving ahead.
The Hatnoora mandal Mahila Samakhya is having as members as many as 38 village samakhyas, of which SHGs are members. All of them are from poor families and they pool money in the Samakhya to meet family expenditures. It was found that many members are falling in debt trap and unable to come out as most of the loans taken by members are being spent on meeting family needs and performing marriages. Many a time the expenditure on marriages is going beyond reasonable level due to social and other pressures. This has came to light during the fist and second phases of COVID- 19 when revenues dropped to almost zero level forcing many to live on the mercy of others. Some members could not repay the amounts they had taken as the amount was spent on marriages.
After thinking over the issue again and again, the members have decided to perform marriages of two girls belonging to poor families. For that each of the member contributed whatever they can and the total amount pooled under ‘Mahila Nidhi’ was about ₹1.8 lakh to perform two marriages. The Mahila Samakhya has gifted the new families all the required -like beds, stove and other material- to start a new life. It was almost one year and both the families are happy.
With tasting the success, the Mahila Samakhya is getting ready to perform another five marriages in April or May and the dates were yet to be finalised by Purohit.
“Both the new couples are happy as their parents are not burdened with any debt after performing the marriage. It was a great relief for the families who performed marriage. For the proposed five marriages also we will follow the same system and pool money from members as well as philanthropists,” said Ch. Sridevi, Assistant Project Manager, Hatnoora, told The Hindu.
Mandal Samakhya president Ms. Sirisha and other members are actively counseling youth to marry without demanding for any dowry.
The Samakhya was also active in performing last rites of the poor.
