Telangana government allocates 100 acres for women-led rice mills and warehouses

By ANI

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has announced a series of women empowerment initiatives aimed at promoting one crore women to millionaire status by 2034. The announcement was made during the foundation laying ceremony for the 8,000 SHG village organisation and the Mahila Grama Sangam Building, held at the Secretariat.

On this occasion, the Chief Minister revealed that 553 buses owned by Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) will be flagged off at Parade Grounds on June 5. A programme has already been implemented to facilitate the purchase of 1,000 buses through women’s SHGs, which will subsequently lease them to the RTC. Mr Reddy recalled that within two days of taking office, the government introduced free travel for women on RTC buses, reimbursing the RTC about Rs 10,000 crore to date. He criticised the opposition for obstructing the scheme’s implementation, adding that the government successfully continued the free travel initiative despite conspiracies.

Mr Reddy reiterated the government’s commitment to elevate women’s power, or Mahila Shakti, as a model for the nation. He announced that the loan limit for bank-linked credit provided to women’s SHGs is being increased from Rs 5 lakhs to Rs 10 lakhs. The government has facilitated bank-linked loans amounting to Rs 60,472 crore and disbursed Rs 1,390 crore as interest-free loans to women’s groups.

The Chief Minister urged women’s groups to move beyond small-scale activities to larger business enterprises. Announcing the allocation of 100 acres of land, he launched a scheme to establish rice mills, warehouses at the Mandal (block) level, and logistics parks managed by women’s groups. The groups will also be involved in the procurement, storage, and milling of food grains, with measures to enable direct procurement of paddy and supply of processed rice to the government. Women will be accountable for each grain to ensure transparency and accountability in procurement.

In addition, the government plans to establish “Mahila Shakti Super Bazaars” operated by women’s SHGs, modelled on corporate retail chains, to compete with major retailers like DMart and Big Bazaar. Land will be leased at concessional rates in urban areas for the bazaars. Mr Reddy said the initiative aims to ensure access to quality goods for the public, provide farmers with markets for their produce, and generate income for women’s groups. The government will act as a stakeholder in these bazaars to channel high-quality agricultural produce, organic products, and daily essentials from farmers to consumers.

Mr Reddy also highlighted plans to establish 1,000 megawatts of solar energy plants through women’s SHGs and involve these groups as partners in the petrol pump business sector, with petrol pumps to be set up in district headquarters and other key locations by women’s groups.

The announcements formed part of “Women’s Week” celebrations under the “Praja Palana – Pragathi Pranalika” (People’s Administration – Progress Plan) initiative. The Chief Minister described the programme as a historic effort to economically empower women and unveiled four new designs of “Indiramma Sarees,” featuring a distinctive parrot-green colour scheme. Laying foundation stones for 8,000 buildings simultaneously was described as a groundbreaking decision, providing women’s groups with spaces for meetings, economic activities, training, and business initiatives.

During the event, Mr Reddy interacted via video conference with women group members from various districts. Members of the Narayanpet women’s federation expressed gratitude for earning approximately Rs 27 lakhs through their petrol pumps. The Chief Minister noted some women’s groups generate monthly incomes ranging from Rs 4 lakhs to Rs 5 lakhs from their business ventures. He praised members from Nirmal district for achieving a 100% loan repayment rate and directed the Nirmal District Collector to allocate a site near a main road to establish a petrol pump for the groups.

Mr Reddy commended Telangana’s women’s SHGs for repaying all their financial obligations honestly and diligently, contrasting them with large corporations defaulting on loans worth thousands of crores. The government distributes “Indiramma Sarees” to women as a traditional gift and announced new high-quality saree designs in parrot-green would be provided in both rural and urban areas.

The event was attended by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka; Ministers Seethakka, Sridhar Babu, and Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy; Rajya Sabha member Vem Narender Reddy; Government Advisor Harkara Venugopal; Women’s Commission Chairperson Gadwal Vijayalakshmi; MLAs; chairpersons of various corporations; and senior officials from relevant departments. CMO Principal Secretary Seshadri; Special Chief Secretary of the Panchayat Raj Department M Dana Kishore; Principal Secretary of the Endowments Department Sailaja Ramaiyer; Secretary of the Women and Child Development Department Anita Ramachandran; SERP CEO Divya; and Director of the Women and Child Development Department Shruti Ojha also participated via video conference.

This article has been republished from the News Mill.