The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
JHARSUGUDA, AUG 2, 2023
Vedanta Aluminium has partnered with the renowned Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) to introduce a broom-making initiative as a part of the several entrepreneurship development opportunities offered under Project Subhalaxmi Udyogini, the second phase of Subhalaxmi Cooperative, one of India’s largest rural women’s cooperatives supported by Vedanta Aluminium.
The enterprise was inaugurated at Chelliapada village in Kirmira Block of Jharsuguda, in the presence of Kirmira Block Chairperson Krishnapriya Sahu and the board members of the Subhalaxmi Cooperative. It was also inaugurated at Taraikela village in Kolabira Gram Panchayat in the presence of Korabira Sarpanch Chetaniya Naie.
The broom-making enterprise will involve over 100 women from 15 villages in Kirmira and Kolabira blocks in the collection of naturally-grown broom grass, and subsequently in producing eco-friendly brooms. The enterprise plans to manufacture nearly 12,000 brooms per month over the next six months, after which production will be scaled up further. The brooms will be deposited at a collection centre managed by members of the Subhalaxmi Cooperative, through which the brooms will be further distributed to wholesalers for sale.
By establishing an efficient broom production and marketing enterprise, the program seeks to enhance productivity, streamline distribution channels, and create a sustainable market for eco-friendly brooms. Through the program, the company also aims to empower the community with sustainable livelihood opportunities by fostering a spirit of entrepreneurship among women, in turn working towards the overall economic development of the region.
Encouraging the entrepreneurial spirits of the cooperative members, Vedanta Limited – Aluminium Business COO Sunil Gupta said “The Subhalaxmi Cooperative stands as a remarkable testament to the positive outcomes of corporate and community collaboration, fostering genuine social and economic empowerment for rural women. We at Vedanta Aluminium are committed to supporting their remarkable achievements. With the recent launch of the broom-making initiative under Project Subhalaxmi Udyogini, we are further reinforcing our commitment to empowering women entrepreneurs in the region.”
Appreciating the company for undertaking the initiative, Kirmira Block Chairperson Krishnapriya Sahu said, “Efforts such as the broom-making enterprise by Vedanta Aluminium hold immense significance in empowering rural women, offering them the means to flourish as entrepreneurs and catalysing overall economic growth in the region.
Subhalaxmi Cooperative is Western Odisha’s largest and one of India’s largest rural women’s co-operatives, supporting 372 Self-Help Groups with more than 4350 members, and empowering more than 1,800 women entrepreneurs on farm and non-farm trades in the last 2 years alone. It created a fund base of about Rs 4 crore and conducted business of Rs 38.13 crore since inception, supporting the cooperative members with around 19,200 loans. Acting as a bridge between community members and various welfare schemes developed by the Indian government for their socio-economic empowerment, Subhalaxmi Cooperative is scaling micro-enterprises like fast food centres, poultry and vegetable farms, grocery stores, beauty parlours, tailoring centres and many more.
It’s ‘Subhalaxmi Mahila Kalyan Panthi’ is a unique social welfare fund providing financial support to expecting mothers, scholarships to meritorious students, support in case of demise of spouse, etc, to more than 1400 beneficiaries.
Governed by 15 elected Board of Directors, it is developing a cadre of women leaders through co-operative affairs and management workshops.
Vedanta Jharsuguda’s social interventions in the domains of sustainable livelihood, quality education, women empowerment, health, water and sanitation, bio-investment and community infrastructure reach out to 80 villages in Jharsuguda and nearby areas, benefiting over 3 lakh people in a year. It empowers more than 4350 women from over 370 SHGs, provides doorstep healthcare services to about 43,000 people annually, gives educational support to more than 13,000 students.
Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 2nd in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2022 world rankings for aluminium industry, a reflection of its sustainable development practices. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.
