CHANDIGARH—“Self-dependent” seems to be a new buzzword in the mind of the government. On the same line, Van Dhan Start-ups set up under the initiative by TRIFED, Ministry of Tribal Affairs has emerged as a source of change for a tribal population which is evident.
TRIFED has organized a webinar to familiarize them with the innovative approach of Van Dhan Start-ups so that they can further spread awareness among people. The webinar was chaired by Pravir Krishna, Managing Director, TRIFED and it was attended by over 40 participants.
Krishna informed that 1205 Tribal Enterprises have been established to provide employment opportunities to 3.6 lakh tribal gatherers and 18000 Self-help groups in 22 States. The aim of the Start-ups scheme is to treble the coverage to 10 lakh tribal gatherers through the Covid-19 relief plan of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs under article 275(I).A State-wise snapshot was also presented to show how the states are faring. Started in 2019, the Start-ups spread rather quickly to all the 22 states, almost became a competition once the states realised the value added by this initiative.
Krishna presented some real-life examples from states like Nagaland and Rajasthan to underline the critical significance of this programme for tribal livelihoods. Van Dhan Vikas Kendras and the products that are being sold were showcased. He mentioned that 2000 products have been identified throughout the country. A bird’s eye view was provided to the participants and samples such as wild honey, broomsticks, donna pattal, Samidha sticks, coffee, bay leaf, bel pulp were displayed.
He reiterated that the uniqueness of the whole exercise is that it has managed to create market linkages and to transform tribal gatherers into entrepreneurs. Many of these tribal enterprises are connected to markets and have received many orders already. As an example, the efforts of the start-ups in Manipur which have turned out to be a model enterprise for the rest of the country, in terms of the packaging, innovations, and training.
In Manipur, 77 Van Dhan Kendras have been established in the State for value addition and processing of forest produces. The Van Dhan Kendras have reported sales of MFP products worth Rs. 49.1 lakhs since September 2019! What stood out in the case of Manipur is the exemplary food safety and hygiene standards adopted by these 77 centres that have been established, the superb attractive packaging of the processed products such as Amla juice, tamarind amla candy and plum jams, and the innovative branding and marketing of these products. A mobile van service has also been started in one of the districts to ensure the selling of these products!.
Krishan also revealed that the first next step was to expand the current coverage of 18,000 SHGs to 50,000 Van Dhan SHGs and to increase three times the coverage to 10 lakh tribal gatherers. The ultimate aim is to transform the tribal ecosystem across the country by establishing Van Dhan Yojana as the next “Amul revolution” in terms of MFPs. Convergences and partnerships are being planned with other ministries and departments and key institutions to take this cause ahead.
He further stated that Rs.15 lakhs from the central government has been provided to each of these centres. So far 25 per cent -30 per cent of this grant has been spent by the VDVKs on activities such as the purchase of raw materials, labour costs etc. An amount has been set aside for each of these kendras and how they use the money and on what is for them to decide. In the case of Nagaland, approximately 3.5 crores worth of sales has been done. Once all the other states pick up steam with respect to this scheme, 1 crores sales per state in a few months would be possible.
The MD, TRIFED explained that the VDVKs has so much potential that they easily offer a ray of hope for home-bound tribal labour and artisans who might face livelihood issues on their return
Y.S. RANA
yadavindras@gmail.com