The most affected sector in Kudumbashree due to the devastating floods was Agriculture. Hundreds of women farmers who ventured into farming after obtaining bank loans have faced heavy setback during the floods. Farmers who mainly took up cultivation of food crops and intercrops were pushed into huge financial crisis. The Krishi sanghams (JLGs) who have suffered massive damage due to floods are still in the dark as to how to re-orient to be engaged again. Land reclamation costs, accrued loss on borrowings and collateral damages have pushed them into huge pecuniary burdens. Having leased lands for cultivation with no insurance and not able to avail loans as the previous loans could not be cleared enough,, the rural struggle hard to get back into normalcy. It’s the need of the hour to extend strong support for basic farm operations like land development activities, irrigation and drainage facilities, input needs, etc.

It’s approximated that 40% of the total JLGs need imperative and urgent assistance for rejuvenation of farm activities. Out of 65,000 JLGs, 25 000 JLGs who were severely hit will be selected for this in the initial stage for extending support. 25 000 women farmer groups (125 000 households) will get financial assistance for restoration of farming.

PROGRESS SO FAR…

1. Identified flood affected JLGs in need of Crisis Management Fund (Table1)
2. Gave circular to districts regarding the selection of beneficiaries (Circular 1. Disbursement of ₹20,000 to flood affected JLGs regarding)

Even after mammoth efforts put in by the state flood affected families are still under a severe financial crisis. Out of the 43 lakhs Kudumbashree families about 2.5 lakh families were affected by flood. Though the Resurgent Kerala Loan Scheme could help over 1.5 lakhs families due to huge loss of income and livelihood opportunities they are still under severe financial crunch. It is noted that as these people have availed RKLS as well as internal loans from NHGs and there is no chance that they will get additional loan from their NHGs at least for another 6 months to 1 year. Moreover corpus of NHG will be very less and will not be able to get either an emergency loan or any bank loan in this period. This will lead them to debt trap.

At this juncture it was proposed to give Vulnerability Reduction Fund at the rate of Rs.10,000 to the account of flood affected NHGs and this will be added to its corpus. These NHGs that have already availed loan under Resurgent Kerala Loan scheme will not be getting further credit for a minimum period of 3 years. Hence Rs. 10,000 to each NHG could be utilized as its corpus and for further credit. Loan from NHGs will give freedom to the members to repay it in small installments. This fund will also remain in the NHGs (members are not allowed to withdraw) and will curtail members from availing loan at higher rate of interest. Hence it is proposed to provide Vulnerability Reduction Fund to 25,000 flood affected NHGs at the rate of 10000 per NHGs, which sum up to 25 Crore.

Progress so far

It was decided to provide VRF to 11936 NHGs who were affected by the floods of 2018 and 2019.

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The overall objective of Skilling and Placement Programme implemented in the State through Kudumbashree for the year 2019-22 as part of RKI is to initiate trade related Skill Development and Placement Programme in the State and to build skills of 10000 youth across the flood affected areas and to ensuring suitable wage employment to at least 7000 and self employment to 3000 youths.

The target group for this programme is poor youth in the age group of 15-35. However, the upper-age limit for women candidates, and candidates belonging to Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), Transgender and other Special Groups like rehabilitated bonded labour, Destitute families, orphans and semi orphans, victims of trafficking, manual scavengers, trans-genders, HIV positive persons, etc shall be 45 years.

In the first phase of its implementation (2016-19) the overall objective was to impart trade related skill development and placement to build skills of 71200 poor rural youth across the state ensuring suitable employment to at least 49840 youths.

Road ahead …

1. Publishing of EOI before February 20^th.
2. PAC on 5^th March.
3. Sanction order and fund disbursement before 10^th March.
4. Batch commencement by 30^th March.

Connect to Work is a comprehensive non-residential training program for imparting soft skill training to educated youth in Kerala to transform them employable; thereby enhancing their job opportunities. More than 5000 youth of Kerala would be provided with necessary Soft Skills, Communicative English, Interview Skills, and Etiquette along with necessary assistance and guidance in each of these areas to ensure upliftment from unemployable to employable status. As the first step, 152 centres would be opened as Connect to Work centres in each block. Upon successful completion of the first phase, the project would be extended to all LSGs.

The Connect to Work Training Program would act as Employment Bridging Program/ Soft Skill Excellence Program for the educated unemployed youth by enhancing their possibilities of getting right jobs.

Progress so far & road ahead…

1. Identified 152 connect to work training centre that can be done through 152 Kudumbashree CDS
2. Draft SOP of the training centre has been prepared
3. Draft for students’ criteria for selection has been prepared.
4. Preliminary discussion with the ASAP team has been done
5. Collect DPRs from 152 CDS by March 1^st.
6. Further discussion with ASAP team.
7. ASAP presentation before ED
8. Call for application for candidates
9. Master training to ASAP trainers.

ARISE (Acquiring Resilience and Identity through Sustainable Employment)

Kudumbashree envisages to identify young members of registered NHGs having basic school level education up to 9th standard and who are having an aptitude to technical education in sectors such as Electrical, Electronic, Plumbing etc..This identified group will be facilitated to undergo skill training in Govt. Polytechnic/ ITI in phased training in the selected sector. Training will be designed with major thrust on practical approach and minimum theory. They will be given exposure to work by involving them in free companies and giving opportunities to gain confidence by doing repair work at household and institutions. Trained skilled members will be linked with major companies/institutions in local area for employment in servicing, maintenance, repair etc.

The objective of the project is to ensure supply of safe wholesome broiler chicken at reasonable price to consumers in the label of Kerala Chicken by Government of Kerala and to develop this sector as a viable livelihood vocation for farmers. By attaining self sufficiency in the production of chicks and broiler chicken meat, money flow to the neighbouring states and exploitation of our farmers/consumers by large scale producers can be controlled.

This project envisages establishing:

1. Broiler breeder farms to produce quality day old chicks under the control of stakeholders and to sell at a reasonable price to farmers.
2. Commercial broiler farms by farmers throughout Kerala with the support of Kudumbashree, AHD, KSPDC and BDS.
3. Other infrastructure viz, processing plants, cold chain facilities  for  transportation,  cold storages, marketing and sales through existing supermarkets and new outlets of the agencies-“Kerala Chicken Shoppe”.
4. To establish rendering plants for scientific waste management and safeguard our environment and water bodies. Also to convert the waste to by-products like organic manure, pet/fish foods/feed ingredient etc.
5. Insurance coverage at a subsidized rate in order to safeguard from the loss due to natural calamities.
6. Quality assurance of meat for food safety by Animal Husbandry Department through State Livestock Marine and Agri Products Laboratory, Maradu, Kochi, an NABL accredited lab.

The Muttagramam (Backyard Poultry) Project is an indigenous bird rearing initiative implemented in Kerala. Kudumbashree will provide capital subsidy of 25000 to the group to establish Backyard Poultry unit. The group consists of 5 members and each beneficiary will    be rearing 20 birds. Kudumbashree has also introduced packed backyard poultry egg in the name of ‘Janova’in all District. Backyard poultry production is the foundation on which the production of Janova eggs is being conceptualized.

At present there are a lot of Kudumbashree beneficiaries who are involved in the process of poultry layer farming. However, they do not have a channel through which they can move the produce. Most of the time the produce is utilized in their area for a loss or the produce is expired which results into complete loss.

Kudumbashree members are the targeted beneficiaries of the proposed project. It is estimated that 40000 rural women will directly get benefit from the proposed project. More than 100000 people indirectly get benefits from the proposed projects. It is proposed to start an Egg powder manufacturing plant at Alappuzha with capacity of 100,000 eggs per shift, egg kiosks and 152 egg packing centres one each at each block.

Start up Village Entrepreneurship Project (SVEP) is one of the flagship livelihood support programme presently implemented by Kudumbashree NRO in 65 blocks across the country. The design of the programme helps in developing and sustaining nonfarm livelihoods for the poor. Based on the success of the implementing the SVEP and analyzing the results, it has been decided that SVEP model based support will be appropriate for the post flood livelihood support in the identified blocks. Under the proposed intervention it planned to roll out the SVEP in 14 flood affected blocks, which will lead to establishment of more than 16,800 new enterprises in both farm and nonfarm sectors. More than 300 microenterprises consultants will be identified and trained under the project, which will later own up the project.

Progress so far

1. SVEP Blocks have been selected and data collection is progressing.
2. MEC selection and training will be completed in March 2020.

The following are the new blocks selected for SVEP:

1. Chambakkulam (ALP)
2. Veliyanad (ALP)
3. Chengannoor (ALP)
4. Pulikeezhu (PTA)
5. Devikulam (IDK)
6. Adimali (IDK)
7. Paravoor (EKM)
8. Chalakkudy (TSR)
9. Mathilakom (TSR)
10. Cherppu (TSR)
11. Mannarkkad (PKD)
12. Kalpetta (WYD)
13. Mananthavady (WYD)
14. Parappa (KSD)

Micro Enterprises Development is an important strategy of Kudumbashree towards economic empowerment of women. All members of Kudumbashree are encouraged to start ‘Micro Enterprises’ using local resources, financial aid through banks and other facilitating institutions/departments, skill training, handholding support through CRPs and Field staff, and the mission facilitates marketing support. Today, there are around 20,000 Micro Enterprises, 10,000 Common Interest Groups (Animal Husbandry) and around 50,000 Joint Liability Groups (Farming). Considering the credit needs of women entrepreneurs and importance of community managed loans over institutional loans and to create support ecosystem at community level, CEF has been designed by Kudumbashree to cater to the livelihood and developmental aspects of micro enterprises as soft loans through Community based Organisation namely Community Development Society (CDS). CEF Program is designed to deliver soft loans to entrepreneurs to satisfy their entrepreneurial needs with very small interest rates. Loans for the entrepreneurial needs of women from the community structure with low interest rates and easy repayment modes, creating financial punctuality and commitment among the entrepreneurs to the community network, development of continuous monitoring mechanism of the entrepreneurial activity by the community, initiation of social commitment of the community over the enterprise are some of the highlights of this program. CEF is designed to cater the capital needs of enterprises opting for expansion such as Procurement of assets, working capital requirements, the needs of obtaining forward and backward market linkages and also as Startup Capital for new enterprises. CEF will also be made available to enterprises in the primary sector, nonfarm livelihood ventures and farm related activities. CEF is designated to revolve among the entrepreneurs promoted by CDS, as the repayment pools in new loans will be sanctioned by the CDS.

To assist 600 CDSs with financial grant as community funds (revolving fund) to support 20,000 women entrepreneurs who are a part of 6,000 Micro Enterprises/Livelihood Activity Groups through community lend soft loans exclusively for taking up activities in regard to enterprise development and thereby enable conducive environment for livelihood activities at the CDS

Progress so far…

1. Demand plan of 900 rural CDS completed
2. 500 CDS LIST priority wise will be taken
3. Currently fund requirement is 10.80 crores in all ULB CDS and 19.20 crores in 500 rural CDS

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