VDVK outlet empowering rural women in Ukhrul
Source: Chronicle News Service / R Lester Makang

Ukhrul, July 17 2024: The Van Dhan Vikas Kendra (VDVK) outlet in Ukhrul town has emerged as a vital catalyst for improving the livelihoods and economic status of women folk in Ukhrul district.

Slowly but surely, the VDVK outlet is leading the way in collaboration between dedicated local farmers/entrepreneurs and the Forest Department.

The tireless efforts of women's self-help groups (SHGs) with the unwavering support of the Forest Department, has created a model for sustainable economic development in the district.

"The VDVK programme implemented and funded by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation (TRIFED) was introduced in Ukhrul district in 2019 with the objective of improving livelihood generation for tribal gatherers, especially women folks," stated Ukhrul forest range officer Chirmishan in an interaction with The People's Chronicle on Wednesday.

She observed that true to its objective, the VDVK programme has been able to empower local womenfolk and improve their livelihood means over the past few years.

"VDVK is empowering rural women through access to resources and opportunities.

Many of them are equipped with the skills and knowledge to manage their own businesses.

This has improved their personal livelihoods, which contributes to the overall economic landscape of the district" .

Chirmishan informed that the VDVK programme in the district started with just 21 VDVK units each comprising 15 SHGs.

"This year, with the addition of another seven VDVKs, the number of VDVKs has reached 28 in the district," she said.

"Under the initiative, rural women received comprehensive training in food processing and value-added goods production under the guidance of two master trainers Pemmichon Tungshang and Leiyawon SP," she said.

Concurrent with the training programme, a VDVK outlet was established at the Ukhrul Forest Division office around 2020 .

"Initially, both the VDVK SHGs and the outlet faced challenges in producing high-quality products.

However, with training and support, the product output significantly improved after the completion of training in 2021," she explained.

Chirmishan who oversees the management of the outlet, informed that the VDVK outlet now offers a wide range of over 30 value-added goods derived from natural resources and forest products as well as crafts including the well-known Longpi pots.

"We have witnessed a remarkable growth in our monthly turnover, exceeding Rs 1.5 lakh.

This is an impressive rise of over 50 per cent compared to our initial turnover," she exclaimed.

She said that the outlet enables rural womenfolk to get direct access to market, apart from relieving them from the burden of packaging value added goods.

A rich array of value added goods such as pickles, chilli, turmeric powder, honey, legumes, dried fruits, fruit candies and other packaged items like black rice, perilla seeds are put on for sales.

Craft products like traditional baskets, bags and Longpi pots are also available at the outlet.

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