Bindu Pallichal, a homemaker from Pravachambalam village near Thiruvananthapuram manufactures 21 ayurvedic food and cosmetic products, its mainstay an ingredient which claims to enhance memory.
If you talk in numbers, her turnover stands Rs.7 lakh, no mean achievement in a state where an entrepreneur is as rare as a teetotaller. Bindu has also bagged several awards at the state and national levels as a woman entrepreneur.
The story behind-
In 2007, she decided to turn into an entrepreneur. She began to experiment with ayurvedic oils and cosmetics because she knew Sanskrit (the oldest known ayurvedic texts were written in the ancient language). Problem was Sanskrit was her only capital or asset to speak of. There was no money to invest or land to build a manufacturing unit.
Bindu became a member of Kudumbashree, an all-women collective of members selected from poor households. The micro enterprises of members like Bindu, who have been streamlined into neighborhood groups (NHGs), are sustained by micro finance. The 2.59 lakh NHGs facilitate thrift mobilization — also known as small savings — and provide customized credit to its members. The savings of Kudumbashree members adds upto Rs.2262 crore which allows them to access linkage banking- loan extended to self-help group or ayalkoottam, NABARD Insurance scheme, grants and the like.
To understand the impact of Kudumbashree, one simply has to look at its scope. The 41-lakh members in the movement translate into nearly 50% of the households in the state. In other words, half the state’s population makes a living out of this program. Kudumbashree’s success gains even more shine because of one constant problem in Kerala.
Initially, the Kudumbashree movement restricted itself to a few areas in farming and agri-business such as rice and vegetable cultivation and making curry powder, pickles, rice powder and so on. Members have since ventured into fields such as construction, driving, cafes, brand development , “Thanks to our huge fund, our senior officials can even think of promoting a bank,” said Sindhu K, a Kudumbashree member in Alangode, a village in Malappuram district that borders Thrissur.
Kudumshree – Today’s one of the largest women empowering project in India.
Priyanka Sharma
iMET Global
iMET Academy 
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