Women have always played a silent role in running the houses in Northeast India – Now the new generation of women is stepping forward to break the status quo.  

Migration is one of the main problems of Milonpur village in Assam, as most of the men leave for cities like Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Arunachal Pradesh in search of better livelihood. Women on the other hand are left behind to take care of children, elders and the household.

Farming is the primary source of income for the people of Northeast region (NER) and Assam is no exception. These farms are small in size and are not sufficient for their sustenance, therefore they also work as labourers in the nearby tea garden or rear livestock. Women are are mostly responsible for the family’s food and nutrition intake.

To increase the productive capacity of the women in the community and improve their nutritional food intake, Caritas India with the help of Tezpur Social Service Society (TSSS) formed two women farming groups. The Jeuti Group and Baha Group have 10 active members from the village who work together for a common purpose. TSSS adopted this village in 2020 under the Caritas India FARM III programme to inspire the locals to start some development projects.

The assistance and guidance of Tezpur Social Service Society (TSSS), a Caritas India partner motivated the group members to cultivate vegetables on the village-owned land. With an initial investment of Rs. 10,000 the group started cultivating tomatoes, beans, bottle gourds, coriander, radish, and cabbage. The first harvest in March 2022 came as a surprise and the group raised a profit of Rs. 25,000 which was equally shared by the group members.

FARM Northeast programme used a simple but innovative method to collectivise the women farmers to enhance their productivity and bring empowerment for their sustainable future.

“We also provided 10 goat kids each to the two groups in October 2021 after observing their enthusiasm for farming and determination to carry out their group activity,” says Wilson Kandulna, Coordinator of TSSS. This not only opened another avenue for income generation but boosted their confidence in taking up a new initiative. The members of the group take good care of the goat kids, administered their vaccinations, and participated in training sessions on goat rearing organised by TSSS with assistance from the District Veterinary Department. The District Development Manager from NABARD, Sonitpur, also visited the groups and assured assistance through the MEDP Scheme.

“We are raising the goat kids and as of now, we have a total of 20 goats,” says Monika Guria, one of the group members. We expect a good income soon because goats reproduce quickly, she adds.

The group members plan to start banana and lemon cultivation and invest some money in vegetable farming from the earnings from the goat-rearing enterprise.

This will certainly add to the family’s income and thereby improve their food and nutrition security.