Page 51 - Tata-Trusts-Annual-Report-2021-22
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OF
HOPE
Changing the lives of 12,000 women
through the Tata Dairy Mission
Chamela Devi is among the thousands of women living in Milk Producer Company (MPC). Functioning as a cooperative
villages dotting India’s countryside whose lives have been made up local and regional producers, an MPC allows the
transformed by the Tata Dairy Mission initiative. member stakeholders to share profits.
With her income solely dependent on cultivating a small land That is how Chamela became a shareholder in the Shwetdhara
holding and meagre sales generated from selling milk, Chamela, Mahila MPC Ltd. (now known as the Shwetdhara MPC), set up in
a resident of Patti village in the Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pratapgarh in 2016 with initial funding support from the Trusts.
Pradesh regularly struggled to provide for her family of eight, Not only did this empower her socially and economically,
including a husband and six children. Chamela also became an active member of a network driven by
market-savvy female dairy producers armed with knowledge
Most farmers in India own a land holding of less
about the latest technology, infrastructure, and assured market
than 2 hectares, making livestock rearing, and
linkages to grow their community-driven business.
the assured and regular cashflows generated
from it, critical for sustainable income. A “Good management by the farmers and the guidance we
lack of supporting infrastructure and received from professionals completely changed the picture for
guidance has made building us,” says Chamela.
capacity in key areas, such as milk
She also managed to double her income and expand her
production, breed improvement,
livestock holding within a few years. The milk cooperative has
and animal nutrition, a challenge.
further expanded its footprint in the region and currently
The Tata Trusts set up the Dairy operates with the help of a network of more than 300 villages
Health and Nutrition Initiative India and about 12,000 women members and their families in the
Foundation (DHANII) as part of the districts of Pratapgarh, Bahraich, Balrampur, and Shravasti.
initiative to help such farmers
by collaborating with local
community organisations to form a
Chamela Devi doubled her income
and expanded her livestock holding 1 NO POVERTY
PROJECT ALIGNS WITH SDG
ANNUAL REPORT 2021-22 44