Kudumbashree has launched Micro Enterprise Resource Centre (MERC) to strengthen the entrepreneurship development activities. Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department and Excise Department, Government of Kerala inaugurated the first of its kind Micro Enterprise Resource Centre at Nedumangad, Thiruvananthapuram on 13 March 2023. The Minister said that the Micro Enterprise Resource Centres started under the leadership of Kudumbashree will strengthen the entrepreneurship development activities.

The Minister said that MERCs will function as Employability Centres at the block level as per the guidelines related to Local Economic Development. Kudumbashree aims to strengthen the livelihood sector to ensure sustainable employment and income for women. Micro Enterprise Resource Centres started at block level will be the best mechanism to grow enterprises. He also clarified that through this, various supports needed to start the enterprise will be available along with finding the real beneficiaries.

Shri. G.R. Anil, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, Government of Kerala said in the presiding speech that Micro Enterprise Resource Centres will help women to get knowledge and skills to enter diverse career fields using new information technologies in the modern world. He also released the logo prepared as part of the project.

MERCs also started functioning in Idukki, Kottayam and Kasaragod districts from 13 March 2023. By 31 March 2023, MERC will start operations in all the remaining nine districts except Wayanad. Shri. Jafar Malik, Executive Director, Kudumbashree stated in the project explanation that the aim is to expand the project to 30 blocks in the next financial year.

Ms. Sreeja C.S, Chairperson, Nedumangad Municipality welcomed the gathering. Shri. D.K. Murali, MLA and Shri. G. Stephen MLA were the chief guests of the programme. Ms. V. Ambili, President, Nedumangad Block Panchayath, Ms. Lekha Rani. U, President, Karakulam Grama Panchayath, Ms. R. Kala, President, Aruvikkara Grama Panchayath, Ms. Beena Jayan S, Ms. Shailaja, Ms. Mini. S, Presidents, Grama Panchayath, Ms. Sunitha, Chairperson, Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayath Standing Committee, Shri. B. Satheesan, Chairman, Nedumangad Municipality Welfare Affairs Standing Committee, Shri. K.V. Sreekanth, Member, District Panchayath, Ms. Sindhu Krishna Kumar, Councilor, Nedumangad Municipality, Shri. Sreekanth A.S, Programme Officer, Kudumbashree and Ms. Seenath, Chairperson, MERC also participated in the programme. Dr. B. Najeeb, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram delivered the vote of thanks.

'Noorang' team's exhibition became the talk of the town. 'Noorang' Team from Thirunelly of Wayanad district of Kerala has set up exhibition and marketing of different tubers & leafy plants in Thiruvananthapuram. The tubers and leafy plants includes Sugandha Kachil, Payasa Kachil, Makkaleppotti, Karinthal, Velunthal and Karimanjal etc. 'Noorang' is a group formed by around ten women from three Kudumbashree NHGs of Irumbupalam Hamlet of Thirunelly as part of the Thirunelly Tribal Comprehensive Development Project implemented by Kudumbashree in Wayanad.

This group works with the aim of conservation, seed production and distribution of tubers, which had a permanent place in the diet of the tribal communities, and imparting knowledge about tubers to the new generation. As part of their tuber cultivation, 130 varieties of tubers were harvested on 4 February 2023.

'Noorang' team became part of the Vaiga Agricultural Exhibition Fair organized at Putharikandam Ground, Thiruvananthapuram from 26 February 2023 to 2 March 2023. A team of 100 had prepared more than 180 display items, including rice and honey, at the stall named 'Paithrukam' (Heritage). Ms. Sunitha, Ms. Rani, Ms. Lakshmi, Ms. Sharada, Mr. Anish and Ms. Sathyabhama are the ones who brought the 'Noorang' fame to Thiruvananthapuram all the way from Thirunelly.

More than 1500 Kudumbashree members convened & celebrated International Women's Day in all its glory. Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department, Government of Kerala officially inaugurated the programme on 8 March 2023. Borrowing the words of the LSGD Minister, these 1500 members were none other than the members of Haritha Karma Sena who strengthen the 'Green Army of Kerala'! They were the participants of the Haritha Karma Sena Sangam organized by Kudumbashree in connection with the International Women's Day celebrations. The Minister also handed over of keys and flagged off the e-rickshaws provided to the Haritha Karma Sena units the using the CSR Fund of ICICI Bank and  inaugurated  'Dheeram', the karate training programme for NHG members.

Shri. V. Abdurahiman, Minister for Sports, Government of Kerala presided over the function. The Minister also launched the logo of the 'Dheeram' project and distributed uniforms to the karate trainees. Both the Ministers jointly performed the distribution of awards to the Best Performing Haritha Karma Sena units and the local bodies that have provided the best support to them and handed over the Memorandum of Understanding for the 'Dheeram' project.

Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department, Government of Kerala said that only by strengthening the Haritha Karma Sena system, the goal of waste-free Kerala can be achieved and the best contribution of Kudumbashree for effective waste management is the Haritha Karma Sena. He also said that it is the best system for doorstep collection and the service of Haritha Karma Sena is very valuable to achieve the government's goal of a waste-free Kerala. He also pointed out that 28,000 Haritha Karma Sena members working in the state removed 5000 tonnes of plastic waste in the last financial year. The Minister said that the 'Dheeram' project will help women in self-defense and increase their confidence and it is the most appropriate day to start the project to provide training in martial arts to women. 420 women will be trained in karate in two phases and then karate training teams will be formed in micro-enterprise model through the project.

Shri. V. Abdurahiman, Minister for Sports, Government of Kerala said that the objective of celebrating women's day is to appreciate the achievements of women and to create awareness about gender equality. Kerala is a state that implements many schemes for women to advance economically and socially. We pay special attention to important issues like gender equality and equal rights. Projects implemented by Kudumbashree to achieve gender equality and women empowerment are gaining world attention today. He said that learning martial arts is the best way to increase the physical capacity of women and face dangerous situations with confidence and the 'Dheeram' project implemented by Kudumbashree will be of great help to Kudumbashree women.

Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree welcomed the gathering. Shri. B.K Venkatesh, Ms. Athira Kannan, Zonal Heads, ICICI Foundation, Shri M. Krishna Das, Municipal Chairman, Guruvayoor Municipality, Shri. Sujin, Chairman, Eloor Municipality, Ms. Vinitha P and Ms. Sindhu Sasikumar, CDS Chairpersons, Shri. Prem Krishnan IAS, Director, Sports Kerala Foundation, Shri. Anil P. Antony, Director, Kudumbashree and Shri. Ajay Kumar, Chief Financial Officer, Kudumbashree participated in the function. Ms. Sreebala Ajith, Kudumbashree, State Programme Officer delivered vote of thanks.

As a part of Women's Day celebrations, Dr. K. Vasuki IAS, Labour Commissioner conducted a motivational class for Haritha Karma Sena members. A talk show was also organized with selected Haritha Karma Sena members from the districts. Ms. Priya Paul, State Programme Manager, Kudumbashree was the moderator of the talk show. Shri. N. Jagajeevan, Consultant, Suchithwa Mission presented the topic.

The 'Kerala Chicken' project being implemented by Kudumbashree in the state has also been extended to Alappuzha district. Shri. P. Prasad, Minister of Agriculture, Government of Kerala inaugurated the project during the function held at P.P. Swathanthra smaraka community hall, Kanjikuzhy on 7 March 2023. With this, the presence of the Kerala Chicken project implemented by Kudumbashree has increased to nine districts.

Kudumbashree is implementing the 'Kerala Chicken' project through Kudumbashree Broiler Farmers Producer Company Limited, which aims to provide quality chicken meat to the consumers at an affordable price.

Ms. Geetha Karthikeyan, President, Kanjikuzhy Grama Panchayath presided over the function. Shri. Prashanth Babu. J, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree, Alappuzha welcomed the gathering. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree delivered the keynote address.

Shri. Krishna Teja IAS. the then District Collector, Alappuzha was the Chief Guest of the function. He congratulated the farmers who had done excellent work in the field of Animal Husbandry under Kudumbashree in various panchayaths of Kanjikuzhy block and honoured them with plaques and 'Ponnada' (Silk Cloth). Dr. Sajeev Kumar, Kudumbashree Programme Officer explained the future activities of the project.

Shri. Sooraj IAS, Sub Collector, Alappuzha, Shri. V. Uthaman, Member, District Panchayath Division, Ms. Shirley Bhargavan, Chairperson, Cherthala Municipality, Ms. Sudarshana Bhai Teacher, President, Mararikulam North Grama Panchayath, Shri. James Chunkathara, President, Kadakarapally Gram Panchayath paid their felicitations. Shri. Xavier K.V, Assistant District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree delivered the vote of thanks.

Kudumbashree Idukki District Mission comes up with Badminton Training to improve the health of Balasabha members. Badminton classes is be taught to the Balasabha members in 8 blocks of the district. The training programme is organized in such a way that it does not affect the school studies. The first phase of this training program began on 4 February 2023.  A total of 210 children are currently undergoing the first phase of the training under the project, which is being implemented in collaboration with badminton associations.

The training is provided at the best quality badminton courts at Ayyappankovil (Kattappana), Adimaly (Adimaly), Vattavada (Devikulam), Vathikkudi (Idukki), Nedunkandam (Nedunkandam), Vandiperiyar (Azhutha), Thodupuzha (Thodupuzha) and Vannappuram (Ilamdesham). The first phase of training will end in the first week of March. Kudumbashree Idukki District Mission considers the reduced  mobile phone usage and more punctuality among the children participating in the training programme as proof of the success of the project. Kudumbashree Idukki District Mission is going ahead with activities to organize District Level Badminton Competitions for the children who excel in the training.

Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram District Mission is to brand the market the products made by BUDS Children in the brand name 'Ithal'. The project is being implemented with the full support of the District Administration. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree and Shri. Geromic George IAS, District Collector, Thiruvananthapuram officially launched the 'Ithal' brand at a function held at the Kudumbashree State Mission Office on 1 March 2023.

Ms. Riya Singh IAS, Assistant Collector, Thiruvananthapuram, Dr. Najeeb, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram, Ms. Aneesha A.J, Assistant District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram, Ms. Sindhu V, Shri. Arun P Rajan, Kudumbashree State Programme Managers and Shri. Jaseel, District Programme Manager, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram District Mission were also present at the function. The project has been started in 14 BUDS institutions in the district. Notepad, Office File, Seed Pen, Cloth Bag and Paper Bag are launched under 'Ithal' brand. A training programme has also been organized for parents and teachers for this purpose.

Symposium on Digital Marketing & Launch of Kudumbashree Products at ONDC was held at Symphony Hall, Mascot Hotel, Thiruvananthapuram on 2 March 2023. Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister of Local Self-Government Department and Excise Department, Government of Kerala officially inaugurated the project to make household products available on ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) digital platform. The minister inaugurated the project by ordering and buying millet powder online. This project is a part of the 100-Day Action Programme of the Government. The Minister said that Kudumbashree aims to make 700 products available on the ONDC platform in the next financial year and this start is a milestone.

Shri. V.K. Prasanth, MLA presided over the function. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree welcomed the gathering. Shri. V.P. Joy IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala delivered the keynote address. Shri. Sreekanth A.S, Programme Officer, Kudumbashree delivered the vote of thanks.  Shri. Nithin Nair, Vice President, ONDC and Shri. Dileep Vamanan, Director, Cellmetric Pvt Ltd was also present at the function. A symposium was also organized on Digital marketing for selected entrepreneurs from the districts in connection with the inaugural programme of the launch of Kudumbashree products on the ONDC platform.

Cherthala Municipality & Kudumbashree CDS jointly organized household appliances collection drive for extreme poor as part of Kudumbashree 'Oppam' Campaign. By way of the collection drive, more than 2000 household appliances were collected for the extreme poor-Destitute- Ashraya Families, which were identified through the ward level survey. 

This special activity was organized by Cherthala Municipality as part of the Oppam State Level Campaign to provide livelihood and financial security to the beneficiaries of PMAY (Urban)-LIFE Scheme, beneficiaries of National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM) being implemented through Kudumbashree in Kerala, urban poor, beneficiaries of Destitute Free Kerala Scheme and Auxiliary group members through entrepreneurship or wage-based employment. The supplies were collected in each ward as per the requirement based on the data collection conducted at the ward level as part of this campaign.  

In the first phase of collection, held on 11 and 12 February 2023, more than 2,000 household items including glass, utensils, cooker and cot were collected. About a thousand families donated different utensils. The materials were collected by a group which included ward councilors, NHG members, social workers, CDS members etc. They went to the houses and collected the equipment and stored it at the ward level. Later, these materials were collected in the vehicle of Haritha Karma Sena and were delivered to the municipality. The campaign will come to an end on 15 March 2023.

Kudumbashree made sales of Rs. 10.22 lakhs at the National Food Fest organized in connection with International Theatre Festival of Kerala held at Thrissur. The National Food Fest was a super hit and the sales was made within 10 days. The Theatre festival was held from 5 to14 February 2023. The food court was set up in the basketball court near the Indoor Stadium, Thrissur.  

A total of 12 stalls were set up under the leadership of Kudumbashree Thrissur District Mission, which made available unique food items from various districts and tribal areas of Kerala and varieties of flavors from the states of Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The food court was open from 11 AM to 11 PM. The Kudumbashree units themselves prepared the food for the foreign groups and organizers who are part of the Theatre Festival. Lakshya Juice unit from Ernakulam, Kalyani Cafe from Thrissur, Swasthi Cafe from Kasaragod, AVS Food from Alappuzha, Venma Cafe Unit from Thalassery, Ice Cream Unit from Kannur, Attappady, V One Unit from Malappuram and Shreyas Cafe from Thrissur were the Kudumbashree units that were part of the Food Festival. Kudumbashree's 'AIFRHM' (Adebha Institute of Food Research and Hospitality Management) supervised the food court.

Along with several ventures in the manufacturing sector and various interventions in service sector including lifestyle disease diagnostics and geriatric care services, NHG members from Alappuzha district have came forward with an IT start-up. The start-up was launched on 2 February 2023.

Two units namely 'Women's Startup' and 'She Tech IT Solution' have been started in Mannancherry of Aryad Division under the Women's Component Project of the District Panchayath. Many services like online marketing, social media promotion, IT training, photography, videography, documentation, data entry and training programmes for women entrepreneurs etc will be available through these units.

Kudumbashree Alappuzha District Mission has aimed to implement the project 'Smart Women' through these units to provide e-literacy to all NHG members in Aryad block.

The start-up unit was inaugurated by Ms. K.G. Rajeshwari, President, District Panchayath. Adv. T.V. Ajith Kumar, President, Mannancherry Panchayath, presided over the function. Shri. K.D. Maheendran, President, Block Panchayath, was the chief guest of the function. Shri. Prasanth Babu, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree, Alappuzha handed over the IT equipments.

Ms. P.A. Jumailath, Vice President, Mannancherry Panchayath, Shri. M.S. Santhosh, Chairman, Development Affairs Standing Committee, Mannancherry Panchayath, Shri. M.G. Suresh, Assistant District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree, Alappuzha, Ms. K.B. Shanuja, Ms. Ambili Das, CDS Chairpersons, Adv. R. Riyas, Member, District Panchayath and Ms.Soniya, Startup Unit Co-ordinator spoke on the occasion.