Rajkot, Oct 10 (IANS) Gujarat plans to establish women-run Amul milk parlours in 18,000 villages across the state under an initiative aimed at expanding rural women’s income opportunities through dairy-related businesses, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said on Saturday.
The initiative is being taken forward through a memorandum of understanding between the Gujarat Livelihood Promotion Company (GLPC) and Amul.
The proposed parlours are intended to create opportunities for women associated with self-help groups to participate in the dairy value chain and develop independent sources of income.
Patel announced the initiative while launching a series of women-focused programmes in Rajkot ahead of Navratri.
“The state government wanted to strengthen women’s economic participation and help them become self-reliant through employment and entrepreneurship,” he said.
The programme also included the distribution of Amul parlour allotment letters to beneficiaries, along with financial assistance for self-help groups.
Cash credit cheques worth Rs 45 lakh were distributed to various groups, of which dairy-related self-help groups received Rs 40 lakh. The remaining assistance included cheques totalling Rs 1,08,640 for other Sakhi Mandals under an e-commerce incentive scheme.
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Jitu Vaghani said coordination between the Cooperation and Animal Husbandry departments would help advance women’s economic empowerment.
“More than three lakh Sakhi Mandals are working across Gujarat to help women become financially independent,” he said.
The milk parlour initiative forms part of a wider effort to connect women’s self-help groups with established markets and business opportunities.
Under the programme, the GLPC also signed memorandums of understanding with institutions, government departments, banks and organisations to support the marketing of products made by women’s groups.
Patel said institutions such as the National Institute of Fashion Technology and the Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, would also guide women in developing digital entrepreneurship skills.
The wider initiative seeks to expand the reach of rural products and help women access new avenues for selling their goods.
The Chief Minister said, “More than 8.5 lakh women in Gujarat had already become Lakhpati Didis.”
He referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s target of helping six crore women across the country to achieve this status by 2029.
The state government had provided Rs 800 crore in assistance last year for women’s economic empowerment, Patel said, adding that it was prepared to provide greater support in the coming years.
Rural Development Minister Kunvarji Bavaliya said ‘Mission Mangalam’ had helped rural women strengthen their livelihoods.
He cited sales of approximately Rs 40 crore generated by around 8,500 self-help groups at 236 Saras Melas across Gujarat over five years, highlighting the role of organised market access in supporting women-led enterprises.
The proposed network of women-run milk parlours is expected to add a dedicated retail avenue to these livelihood efforts.
–IANS
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