Modern Methods Made Composting A Lucrative Venture for Women in Chhattisgarh
Details:
“The training provided by NIF has changed our lives. Now women need to devote only 1-2 hours of their time daily to making compost. We sell compost to nurseries but we want to increase our yields and foray into online marketing,” Sunita Halder, Nature Bodies Mahila Swa-sahayta Samuh, Chhattisgarh
The Nature Bodies Mahila Swa Sahayta Samuh is an active SHG in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh that works dedicatedly for environment conservation and women empowerment so as to contribute in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The SHG make compost from the leaves by traditional method where it used to take a very long time of approx. 3 months.
NIF visited the community and realized the need for the technology intervention. They provided the community with the technology and provided virtual training and video clips to all those who needed. This technology has helped in making the compost with more ease. This innovation has proved very helpful for the SHG. After this they have shifted from vermicomposting to leaf-grinder because there is a reduction in time-consumption and drudgery after the use of the leaf grinder machinery. It has helped the community in a number of ways. It uses dry leaves which are easy to collect and light in weight to carry. It helps in cutting or crushing the leaves which was done manually before the introduction of technology. The small sizes of the grinded leaves helps in accelerating the process of compost making and hence it takes less time for the preparation of the compost, usually 30 to 45 days. Along with that , it does not require any extra worms to be added. Quality control is ensured internally.
Thus, this innovation helped the SHG to make the compost easily and also their income opportunities have increased. The females of the SHG are able to earn a good livelihood and are able to set the example of Women empowerment empowered by such innovations of DST. The community is also popularizing this innovation so that more and more people can receive the benefits from such important machines. They are also trying to build marketing linkages through online marketing.
The machine is really helpful in reducing the time of compost making and increasing the produce thereby increasing the profit of our SHG. It is an admirable innovation of DST which is providing the ease of earning the livelihood for females. This has increased the women workforce in the scientific field. The community welcomes more such innovations for betterment of the society.
