The Hamirpur district administration in Himachal Pradesh will provide dedicated stalls for women from self-help groups (SHGs) at major public fairs.
The initiative allows rural women entrepreneurs to sell items like pickles, chutneys, sweets, candles, and handicrafts directly to customers.
Authorities aim to boost local self-employment, improve financial independence, and create direct market access for SHG products.
Women from self-help groups (SHGs) will now be provided dedicated stalls at fairs and other major events in Hamirpur district to sell their locally-made food and handicraft items, according to an official.
These stalls will be allocated through the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), providing a marketplace for women's products and creating opportunities for them to increase their income, according to Asmita Thakur, deputy director and co-project officer, DRDA Hamirpur.
The stalls will enable the women to sell items such as pickles, chutneys, preserves (murabbas), sweets, crocheted goods, candles, and various other handicrafts, she said on Tuesday.
This initiative will ensure that products made by women in the district's self-help groups reach customers directly, while also fostering self-employment.
"Women in rural areas, through their self-help groups, are producing a wide range of items, from food products to handicrafts. Having access to stalls at fairs and major events will now allow these women to promote and showcase their products," she said.
A self-help group (SHG) is a small, voluntary, and informal association usually composed of 10 to 25 local individuals (frequently women) from a similar socioeconomic background.
In SHGs, members come together regularly to pool their savings, build a common fund, and provide collateral-free microloans to one another for personal needs or small business ventures.
There are about 25,000 SHGs operating across the state, and most of them are in the districts of Hamirpur, Kangra, Mandi, Chamba, Shimla, Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti.
