JHARKHAND: Gloria from Thetaigangar block of Jharkhand’s Simdega district used to waste her time sitting idle before joining the Mahila Utpadak Samooh, a women’s cooperative involved in collection and selling of forest produce, especially medicinal plants and herbs.
Now, this gives her an additional earning of over Rs 4,000 every month. More than 12,500 rural women like Gloria are benefitting from the training programme of Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS) under Medicinal Plant Project of the Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana.
Under the project, women living in and around forests are trained in collection and processing of Kusum, Karanj, tamarind and other forest produce. They are also being provided market linkage through Palash Mart spread across the state. With this government initiative, tribal women are earning over Rs 4,000 every month. Moreover, about 300 farmers are also earning up to Rs 5,000 by working with rural service centres.