Kudumbashree made a strong presence at the 41st India International Trade Fair (IITF) organized at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 14 November 2022 under the aegis of India Trade Promotion Organization and Union Ministry of Rural Development. The commercial stall for marketing the products in the Kerala Pavilion at IITF has two stalls for marketing the various products of NHG members from 14 districts. Also, a special themed stall has also been set up to explain Kudumbashree livelihood activities/enterprise projects based on the theme 'Vocal for Local, Local to Global'. The food court adjacent to the fair also has Kudumbashree Cafe units (Karuna from Kozhikode district and Sree Vigneshwara from Ernakulam district).

IITF also hosts Saras Mela, which is organized by the National Rural Livelihood Mission to promote the best products of rural entrepreneurs across India. Saras Mela has six stalls of Kudumbashree entrepreneurs. Megha, Vandanam, Chamundeshwari, Ushas, Sangeetha and Shree Aambal units from Palakkad, Wayanad, Idukki and Ernakulam districts are participating in Saras Mela. The fair will conclude on 27 November 2022.

'Arivoonjal', the Special Children's Day Special Magazine has been released. The Children's Day Edition 'Arivoonjal', written and edited by Kudumbashree Balasabha members, was released on 14 November 2022 by Dr. Renu Raj IAS, Ernakulam District Collector and Ms. Rima Kallingal, cine actress. The special edition was launched at the closing ceremony of the State BUDS Festival.

This Special Children's Day Edition includes stories, poems, travelogues, memoirs and interviews. The Editorial Board which consists of Ayush Praveen (Editor), Fatima Anchum, Fatima Sanha P, Gayathri. R, Parvathy M.S, Sania P.S and Shruthimol.P are the ones who bring out this Children's Day Special Magazine.

Kudumbashree Entrepreneurs has indeed tickled the taste buds of  the National Workshop Representatives. The 9 Kudumbashree units, more than 100 people for cooking assistance and 20 AIFRHM (Abedha Institute of Food Research and Hospitality Management) trainers for supervision. The Mar Athanasius Jubilee Memorial Hall, Akaparamp, near Ernakulam CIAL Convention Center, had indeed turned into a culinary hub. They were busy preparing food for about 3000 people who came to participate in the Three-Day National Workshop on 'Localization of Sustainable Development Goals in Gram Panchayats' which was started in CIAL on 14 November 2022.

The cuisine was based on the menu consisting of 'North Indian and South Indian' food dishes according to the taste and interest of those who come from different states of India. On the first day of the National Workshop, a total of 13,000 meals were prepared for five meals including breakfast. Food was prepared for 10,000 people in four meals the second day.

The cooked food is packed and is transported to the venue in three vehicles. There were 85 Kudumbashree members trained by AIFRHM to serve food in CIAL. Paneer Butter Masala, Pulao, Dal, Veg Jalfrezi, Aloo Mutter, Green Salad along with Chicken Roast, Fish Curry, Fish Fry, Mutton Roast, Palada and Dal Payasam were prepared for the lunch. The second day's attraction was dishes like Chicken Chettinad, Dal Makhani, Kerala Parotta, Kappa, Chutney, Kadai Veg Curry and Tribal Special Vanasundari Chicken. Everyone gave 100 out of 100 marks for the food prepared by Kudumbashree units.

Kudumbashree's one unit from Thiruvananthapuram district (Brittana), three units from Ernakulam district (Samrudhi, Yuvashree, Bismi), two units from Kozhikode district (Shreyas, Souparnika) and one unit each from Thrissur, Malappuram and Palakkad districts (Sreemuruga, Cafe, Tribal) were engaged in this catering task.

Thrissur District Team has bagged the Overall Championship in State BUDS Youth Festival which was held at CUSAT Campus, Kalamassery, Ernakulam on 13 and 14 November 2022. Thrissur Team bagged the Championship b securing 23 points. More than 300 children have participated in 15 categories. Ernakulam District Team who host the BUDS Youth Festival came in second place by scoring 21 points and the Wayanad district team secured the third position with 19 points.

Shri. Anwar Sadat, MLA presided over the concluding session and Shri. K.N. Unnikrishnan MLA inaugurated the function. The Award to the winners were distributed by Shri. K.N. Unnikrishnan, Shri. Anwar Sadat, Shri. Mathew Kuzhalnadan, Dr. Renu Raj IAS, District Collector, Cine actress Ms. Rima Kallingal, Chief Guest of the function and Ms. Krishnapriya, Chief Finance Officer, Kudumbashree and Shri. Pradeep Kumar, Programme Officer, Kudumbashree.

Anish AC of Kondazhy BUDS School of Thrissur district became the 'Kalaprathibha'. Ms. Rima Kallingal, Cine actress presented the awards to Ms. Sreelakshmi who designed the State BUDS Youth Festival logo and Ms Danny Varghese who suggested the name 'Thakadhimi' and Master Nayan, an Autistic Child Philosopher.

Shri. Ullas Thomas, President, Ernakulam District Panchayath welcomed the participants during the valedictory function. Ms. Seema Kannan, Chairperson, Kalamassery Municipality, Ms. Sangeeta Rajesh, Councilor, Ms Sujatha Velayudhan and Ms. Fathima Muhammed delivered the felicitations. Ms. Preethi. M.B., District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Ernakulam District Mission delivered the vote of thanks.

A three-day National Workshop on ‘The Localization of Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) in Gram Panchayats through Adopting Thematic Approach of Theme -1: ‘Poverty Free & Enhanced Livelihoods Gram Panchayats’ was held at CIAL Convention Centre, Kochi Kerala from 14-16 November 2022.  Shri Kapil Mureshwar Patil, Minister of State (MoPR), Government of India inaugurated the workshop by lighting the lamp.

Shri M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Department of Local Self - Governments, Government of Kerala delivered the Keynote address. He expressed his gratitude to MoPR for giving the state of Kerala the opportunity to host the National Conference on the localization of SDG. He opinionated that it is a great opportunity for Kerala to share our experience with the delegates from other States and also it's a learning experience which is mutually beneficial. He also mentioned that this conference is having a wider agenda to discuss the possibility of localization of SDGs in 9 themes. Grama Panchayats’ discussion aims to create awareness on the National level importance of addressing the issues of marginalization. Also the discussions should focus on the inclusion and access to basic services and also social security and protection system through Grama Panchayats. 

Panel Discussions were held on topics such as Addressing Marginalisation – Inclusion and Multi-Dimensional Poverty, Realizing the potential of SHGs for Income Enhancement and Community Development, The Role of Panchayats in Addressing Income Poverty, Safety Net for Social, Economic and Environmental Protection through Panchayats, Best Practices on Poverty-Free and Enhanced Livelihood GPs from the State of Kerala and The Way Forward.

Smt. Sarada G. Muraleedharan, Additional Chief Secretary Government of Kerala delivered the Welcome Address. Shri. Kapil Mureshwar Patil released the video of compendium by clicking the remote. More than 350 videos were prepared on the topic localization of SDG in various themes such as poverty free and enhanced livelihood village, healthy village, child friendly village, water sufficient village, clean and green villages, self-sufficient infrastructure, socially secured village, good governance village, engendered village etc.

Shri V. Muraleedharan, Minister of State of External Affairs, Government of India, Shri M. B. Rajesh, Minister, Department of Local Self-Government, Government of Kerala, Smt. Sarada G. Muraleedharan, Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala, Shri. Nagendranath Sinha, Secretary MoRD, Government of India, Shri. Sunil Kumar, Secretary, MoPR, Government of India, Dr. Sharmila Mary Joseph, Principal Secretary, Department of Local Self-Government, Government of Kerala was present at the function.

'Thakadhimi 2022', State Level BUDS Youth Festival has been inaugurated. Shri. M. B Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department, Government of Kerala inaugurated the programme at CUSAT Campus, Kalamassery, Ernakulam on 13 November 2022. He said that specially abled children have unique talents and skills and BUDS institutions are the most impressive and proud one among Kudumbashree's social interventions. BUDS Youth Festival is being held at Kudumbashree on 13 and 14 November 2022. 

Shri. P. Rajeev, Minister for Industries, Government of Kerala presided over the function. Shri. Hibi Eden, MP was the Chief Guest of the occasion. Shri. Ullas Thomas,  President, Ernakulam District Panchayath and Chairman, BUDS District Advisory Committee launched the documentary on BUDS Livelihood Centres.

Painting done by Akshay Raj of Thrithala BUDS School, Palakkad was gifted to Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree welcomed the gathering. Shri. R. Pradeep Kumar, State Programme Officer, Kudumbashree, Dr. B. Najeeb, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram District Mission, Shri. S.C. Nirmal, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Thrissur District Mission, Ms. Sujatha Velayudhan, Ms. Fatima Muhammad, CDS chairpersons of  Kalamassery Municipality CDSs and other officials participated. Ms. M.B. Preethi, District Mission Co-ordinator, Kudumbashree Ernakulam District Mission delivered the vote of thanks.

328 talents who topped the District Level Youth Festivals are selected in 15 categories at the State Level Youth Festival. Folk dance, Oppana, Group Dance, Fancy Dress, Light Music, Mimicry, Drawing and Painting Competitions were also held on the first day in three venues namely Theithaka, Dholak and Canvas.

The logo of the National Saras Mela 2022 proposed to be held at Kottayam was released and the Organizing Committee was formed. Shri. V.N. Vasavan, Minister of Co-operation and Culture, Government of Kerala inaugurated the organizing committee formation meeting and released the logo during the function held at Mamman Mappila Hall, Kottayam on 12 November 2022. Saras Mela, which brings products and food varieties of entrepreneurs from different states of India at one place, will be held from 15 to 24 December 2022 at Nagampadam Ground, Kottayam. Ms. Nirmala Jimmy, President, District Panchayath presided over the function.

Saras Theme Music Audio was release  by Shri. Thomas Chazhikkadan MP. The first sale of the gift coupons issued in connection with Saras Mela was carried out by Ms. Bincy Sebastian, Municipal Chairperson. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree explained the Saras Mela scheme. Saras Mela's logo was designed by Shri. Pradeep Kumar, a native of Kecheri, Perumannu of Thrissur district. The logo depicts the 25th anniversary of Kudumbashree and also influence and faith of Kudumbashree in the society and the advancement of women through it. The theme music is composed by Shri. D. Jayadev, Music Director.

Shri. Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, MLA,  Dr. P.K. Jayashree IAS, District Collector, Kottayam, Shri. Mukesh K. Mani, Secretary, Block Panchayath President Association, Shri. Ajayan K. Menon, Secretary, Grama Panchayath President Association, Shri. Tomichan Joseph, Ms. Omana Gopalan, Block Panchayath Presidents, Shri. Abhilash K. Divakar, District Mission Coordinator, Kudumbashree Kottayam District Mission, Shri. Prakash P. Nair, Assistant District Mission Coordinator, also spoke at the function.  Chairpersons of local self-governing bodies of the district, CDS chairpersons and Kudumbashree District Mission officials also participated in the programme. 

Organizing Committee of the Saras Mela was formed with Shri. V.N. Vasavan, Minister as Chief Patron, MPs, MLAs, District Panchayath President, Kottayam Municipal Chairperson as Patrons and Dr. P.K. Jayasree, District Collector as Chairman and Shri. Abhilash K. Divakar, Kudumbashree Kottayam District Mission Co-ordinator as Convener. Nine sub-committees were also formed.

Winners of the Competition to suggest logo and name for the BUDS State Youth Festival 2022 has been announced. Ms. Sreelakshmi M.A, a native of Mathilakam of Thrissur district bagged the first position in the State Level Logo Design Competition organized by the Kudumbashree Ernakulam District Mission. She is a second year student of M.F. A  Applied Arts at  RLV College, Thrippunithura. Rs 5000 will be given as reward.

Ms. Danny Varghese, native of Ernakulam district came first in the name-suggesting contest. The name 'Thakadhimi' bagged the prize. Ms Danny is the Social Development/DDU-GKY Block Coordinator at Ernakulam District Mission. Rs 10,000 will be given as reward.

Kudumbashree Signature Store has been opened at Karipur International Airport. Shri. M.B. Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department, Government of Kerala inaugurated the Signature Store at Karipur International Airport on 10 November 2022. "Kudumbashree brand has opened its doors to the world at Kozhikode International Airport". The Minister said. He gave this title to this initiative while inaugurating Kudumbashree's signature store at Karipur International Airport.

He said that Kudumbashree has sprouted wings and the fame of Kudumbashree is growing beyond the borders. Kudumbashree Signature Store is being opened for the first time at an International Airport in the state under the 'Avsar' scheme launched by the Central Government as part of encouraging self-help groups. Only Karipur International Airport in the state has been included in Avsar project.

The 80 square feet store in the International Departure Hall has the best products manufactured by the Kudumbashree units of the district and other parts of the state. In the first phase, food products, handicrafts, clothes etc. will be available in the store. Shri. Muhammadali Chemban, President, Pallikal Grama Panchayath presided over the function. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director Kudumbashree explained the project. Shri. S. Suresh, Director, Karipur International Airport made the first sale.

Shri. K. Abdul Kalam Master, President, Peruvallur Grama Panchayath,  Ms. C.T. Fatima Suharabi, Chairperson, Kondotty Municipality, Shri. S. Sundar, Joint General Manager, Airport Operations, Shri.  A.V. Kishore, C.I. F Deputy Commandant, Shri. R. Rajesh, Commercial Joint General Manager, Shri.  S. S. Mohammad Shan, State Assistant Programme Manager, Kudumbashree, Shri. Jafar K. Kakkooth, District Mission Coordinator, Kudumbashree Malappuram District Mission, Shri. P. Reneesh,  District Programme Manager, Shri, P.E. Salmath, CDS Chairperson, Pallikkal Gram Panchayath, Ms. C.P. Fatima Beevi, CDS Chairperson, Kondotty Municipality, Ms. K.T. Sreeja, Entrepreneur Representative, Ms. P.K. Zainaba, Kudumbashree Governing Body Member and others participated in the function.

The results of Kudumbashree Oru Nerchithram’ Photography Competition Season 5 has been announced. Shri. Sandeep Sebastian, Kannamkulam House, Erumely, Kottayam bagged the first prize. Shri. Suresh Cameo, Thekkumbatt House, Thekkankuroor, Malappuram came second and Shri. Vincent Pulikkal, Senior Photographer, The New Indian Express, Thiruvananthapuram Bureau came in the third place. The Award for the Best Photographer is Rs. 25,000. The second prize and third prize are Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 10,000 respectively. Other ten pictures were selected for the Consolation Prizes. Cash Award of Rs. 2000 each will be given as Consolation Prize.  The jury consisted of Shri. C. Ratheesh, Senior Photographer, Shri. B. Jayachandran, Senior Photographer, Shri. V. Vinod, Chief Photographer, Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Kerala, selected the winners.

The photo clicked at a Kudumbashree Janakeeya Hotel made Sandeep eligible for the first place. The jury commented that this film which was titled as 'Enough, both the stomach and mind are full' was very heart touching. The jury also stated that the images that express the message of Kudumbashree and command the perfection of photography have been selected.

The competition was organized from 22 August 2022 till 13 October 2022. The winning films were selected from over 700 entries in the well-attended competition. Shri. Akhil E.S, Shri. Kelvin Kavassery, Shri. Arun Krishnankutty, Shri. Madhu Edachena, Shri. Bonyem Kalam, Shri. Josekutty Panakkal, Shri. Mithun Anila Mithran, Shri. Badaruddin, Shri. Shameer Oorappalli and Shri. Saju Naduvil.

To see the award winning pictures, please click : www.kudumbashree.org/photography2022