Govt allocates 39600 MW of domestic Solar PV module manufacturing capacity under PLI (See 'Corp Brief') Rs 32,578 Cr loans sanctioned for Renewable Energy projects during FY 2022-23 (See 'Corp Brief') CCI okays acquisition of share of NSPIRA Management by Puneet Kothapa, Ponguru Sindhura & Ponguru Sharani (See 'Corp Brief') Trade Marks - Defendants are infringing registered word mark MACLEODS and device mark of Plaintiff: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Raksha Mantri receives Rs. 224 Cr as dividend from BEL (See 'Corp Brief') Co Act - Companies already been struck off cannot be revived by impugned order but petitioners can file appropriate proceedings in accordance with law for seeking revival: HC (See 'Legal Desk') G20 Trade Finance Cooperation during TIWG Meeting scheduled in Mumbai tomorrow (See 'Corp Brief') Guarantees amounting to Rs. 4,06,310 crore approved under Credit Guarantee Scheme for MSMEs (See 'Corp Brief') Arbitration Act - Request for appointment of Sole Arbitrator can not be accepted as there is no agreement between parties: HC (See 'Legal Desk') EIACP takes PM's message of Mission LiFE to people (See 'Corp Brief') CPC - Since Court u/s 151 of CPC has ample power to dismiss suit having been Settled suit cannot be rejected under Order VII Rule 11 of CPC: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Centre to take up with States for accelerated use of Biomass Pellets by State GENCOS and IPPs (See 'Corp Brief') 19.8 crore ration cards digitized so far: Govt (See 'Corp Brief') Trade Mark Act - Mark 'VASUNDHRA' is device mark and registration of same does not automatically grant appellant exclusive right in respect of word 'Vasundhra': HC (See 'Legal Desk') MoU signed between NHIDCL and CSIR-SERC, Chennai for sharing innovative ideas of highway engineering (See 'Corp Brief') Trade Mark Act - Mark is entitled to be certified as a well- known trade mark as people have knowledge or recognition of trade mark in relevant fashion industry: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Sonowal inaugurates 'Sagar Manthan', Real-time Performance Monitoring Dashboard (See 'Corp Brief') Competition Act - Conduct of OP prima facie have resulted in discriminatory conditions as well as pricing for which investigation can be ordered by DG: CCI (See 'Legal Desk')

SHGs played stellar role in managing COVID pandemic; need to upgrade SHGs to micro-entrepreneurs: Economic Survey

Published: Jan 31, 2023

By TIOLCorplaws News Service

NEW DELHI, JAN 31, 2023: THE years of pestilence acted as an opportunity towards mobilising Self Help Group (SHG) women to unite, transcend their group identity and collectively contribute to crisis management. They emerged as pivotal players in crisis management, leading from the front in - producing masks (with cultural variants such as Gamusa Masks in Assam), sanitisers, and protective gear, creating awareness about the pandemic (e.g. Patrakar Didis of Jharkhand), delivering essential goods (e.g. Floating supermarkets in Kerala), running community kitchens (e.g. Prerna Canteens in Uttar Pradesh), supporting farm livelihoods (e.g. Pashu Sakhis for animal health care services, Aajeevika Farm Fresh Online selling and distribution mechanism for vegetables in Jharkhand), convergence with MGNREGS (in UP, Bihar, Chhattisgarh), and in delivery of financial services (e.g. Bank Sakhis managing bank rush for availing Covid-relief DBT cash transfers), notes the Economic Survey 2022-23. Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Economic Survey in Parliament today.

 The Survey observes that the production of masks by SHGs has been a noteworthy contribution, enabling access to and use of masks by communities in remote rural areas and providing vital protection against the Covid-19 virus. As on 4 January 2023, more than 16.9 crore masks were produced by SHGs under DAY-NRLM.

Government's Covid-19 Package for SHGs

Under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY), the limit for collateral-free loans for women's SHGs was doubled from Rs.10 lakh to  Rs.20 lakh. This is expected to benefit 63 lakh women SHGs and 6.85 crore households.

National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) allowed for an additional Vulnerability Reduction Fund of  Rs. 1.5 lakh to be extended to Village Organisations (VOs) in Covid hotspot areas and for vulnerable groups.

Way forward

SHGs are well-placed to facilitate overall rural development owing to their access to the last mile, ability to draw on communities' trust and solidarity, knowledge of local dynamics, and ability to swiftly manufacture simple products and services through the aggregation of members' economic activities. The Pre-budget Survey recommends that the demonstration of their resilience and flexibility during crises, including Covid, needs to be thus regularised for long-run rural transformation. This includes, among other things, addressing inter-regional disparity in the deepening of the SHG movement, graduating SHG members into micro-entrepreneurs, culturally contextualised skill development for moving up the value chain in products and services, and including the least privileged under the SHG umbrella.

TIOL CORP SEARCH

TIOL GROUP WEBSITES