Women Self Help Groups at Thiruvarur District-A Case Study

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WOMEN SELF HELP GROUPS AT THIRUVARUR DISTRICT-A CASE STUDY

A thesis submitted to the Bharathidasan University For the Award of the Degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN COMMERCE

Mr. K. GANDHI, M.Com., M.Phil., Ref.No.34506/Ph.D./Commerce/P.T/Jan-2011

UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF

Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI, M.Com., M.B.A., M.Phil., Ph.D., Associate Professor in Commerce, A.D.M.College for Women (Autonomous) Nagapattinam.

BHARATHIDASAN UNIVERSITY THIRUCHIRAPPALLI – 24

AUGUST – 2014

Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI, M.Com. M.B.A., M.Phil., Ph.D., Associate Professor in Commerce, A.D.M.College for Women (Autonomous) Nagapattinam – 611001

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the thesis entitled “WOMEN SELF HELP

GROUPS AT THIRUVARUR DISTRICT- A CASE STUDY” submitted to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, is a bonafide record of the research work done by Mr. K. GANDHI, during the period of his study in fulfilment of the requirement of Ph.D., in commerce in the P.G. and Research Department of Commerce, A.D.M. College for

Women (Autonomous), Nagapattinam. Further, it is certified that this thesis has not previously formed the basis for the award of any Degree,

Diploma, Associateship, Fellowship or any other similar title and that it is an independent work on the part of the candidate.

Research Advisor

(Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI)

Mr. K. GANDHI, M.Com. M.Phil. Assistant Professor in Commerce, King Nandhivarman College of Arts and Science Thellar-Vandavasi - 604406.

DECLARATION

I, K.GANDHI, hereby declare that the thesis entitled “WOMEN

SELF HELP GROUPS AT THIRUVARUR DISTRICT- A CASE

STUDY” is my original work and that it has not previously formed the basis for the award of any Degree, Diploma, Associate ship, Fellowship or other similar title. This work has been done under the guidance and supervision of Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI, Associate Professor,

Department of Commerce, and A.D.M. College for Women

(Autonomous), Nagapattinam.

Research Scholar

(K. GANDHI)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It is with a feeling of happiness and gratitude on having finished successfully this arduous but stimulating task; I thank God for having sustained me throughout. I extend my sincere gratitude to the authority of Bharathidasan University, Thiruchirappalli, for providing me an opportunity to pursue this research. I express my deep sense of gratitude to my learned and beloved supervisor and guide Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI, M.Com, M.B.A., M.Phil., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Commerce, A.D.M. College for Women (Autonomous), Nagapattinam, without whose guidance, encouragement, supervision and moral support, this work would not have been possible. She has been the prime personality in providing me all possible assistance at every stage by sparing much of her precious time. The present study is an inevitable outcome of her valuable comments. Her role will remain a source of enduring inspiration throughout my life. My sincere thanks are due to the Management, A.D.M. College for Women, and Dr. S. MYTHILI, M.Com, M.Phil., Ph.D., Principal, A.D.M. College for Women (Autonomous), Nagapattinam, for having permitted me to undergo the course in the Department of Commerce. My sincere thanks are due to Dr. M. SELVA CHANDRA, M.Com., M.Phil., Ph.D., Head, Other Faculty Members, Department of Commerce, A.D.M. College for College for Women (Autonomous), Nagapattinam for having permitted me to undergo the course. My heartiest gratitude goes to my mentor Dr. V. RAJAGOPALAN, Syndicate member of Bharathidasan University & Principal, Sri Venkateswara College of Arts& Science, for his valuable guidance and suggestions on research methodology based on which carried out the study. His guidance and advice shaped and changed my attitude in own and professional lives. I extend my sincere thanks to Dr. C.THIRUSELVAN and Dr. N. PALANIVELU doctoral committee members for their valuable guidance and suggestions to finish my work with in a time. I owe a deep gratitude and heartfelt thanks to DR.M.TAMILARASAN assosiate professor in commerce. I extend my sincere thanks to Mrs.R.ILAMATHI, Mrs.N.MANIMOZHY Mr. S. RAJASWAMINATHAN, Mr. A.SANTHANAKANNAN, Mr. R. SIVAGURU, Mr.M.KANNAN, Mr.P.AURNMOZHI and other Colleagues have always inspired me with his/her expansive knowledge and progressive thoughts. I would like to put on record the inputs provided by the Librarian of various universities in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry has been very cooperative and never failed to provide their valuable suggestions and directions for inspiring me to finish my work within the stipulated span. I owe a deep gratitude and heartfelt thanks to the Assistant Director, Women Development Department at Thiruvarur District and other officers who have provided me their views for my research work. I am also thankful to the Officers of various Non Governmental Organizations, various self help group members and co-ordinators,bank managers who have spared their precious time during my personal visit to their offices and to my every phone call. I express my heartfelt thanks to my friends, Student friends, Research Scholars and the hundreds of respondents who spared the vital information for preparing the draft questionnaire and for their enthusiastic participation in the final survey. I also express my gratitude to my extended family members who have motivated me and taken pride in my achievements. The names of all the persons may not be mentioned but nobody is forgotten.

K.GANDHI

CONTENTS

PAGE. CHAPTERS CONTENT NO CERTIFICATE DECLARATION ACKNOWLDGEMENT ABSTRACT LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES ABBREVIATIONS INTRODUCTION AND DESIGN OF THE I 1 STUDY II PROFILE OF THE THIRUVARUR DISTRICT 28 III AN OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE 36 SHGs AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IV 74 AND BANK LINKAGE PROGRAMME V SHGs AND WOMEN DEVELOPMENT 164 SHGs AND SUSTAINABLE NATURAL VI 200 RESOURCES MANAGEMENT SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS VII 227 AND CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY 239 APPENDIX 243

ABSTRACT

The development of mankind was the major concern of economic thinkers and policy makers of all the time all over the world. Self Help Group is a homogeneous group of poor, women, users etc. This group is voluntary one formed on the areas of common interest so that they can think, organize and operate for their development. The strength of Self Help Groups is based upon the fact that the people who are facing problems are likely to be the most committed to solve them. The present study has been designed as a case study of the economic and community development interventions of Women SHG in the Thiruvarur district. These Women SHGs have been able to contribute to women development and empowerment in a big way through micro finance operations and other community development services. The study has concluded that the women SHGs organic farming practices have been highly beneficial to farmers and society and have led to eco friendly cultivation, conservation of natural resources and protection of soil and water from pollution.

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LIST OF TABLES

Table Page Title No. No. 4.1 Growth of micro finance in india 86 4.2 Number of women SHGs promoted by SHG form 89 2005-2006 to 2012- 13 4.3 Number of NHGs promoted under SHG 91 4.4 Savings –internal lending radio of Women SHGs under 94 SHGs 4.5 Internal lending by the women SHGs under SHGs 97 4.6 Linkage between banks and women SHGs 100 4.7 Bank NHG linkage under SHGs 103 4.8 Bank linkage rate of Women SHGs and NHGs 104 4.9 Total credit bank loan ratio of Women SHGs 106 4.10 Credit supplied by the NHGs 107 4.11 Distribution of micro credit by five co –operative banks 109 4.12 Micro credit by Women SHGs and the average micro 110 credit by a five co –operative bank 4.13 Repayment rate on small loans by Women SHGs 113 4.14 Repayment rate on small loans under NHGs 114 4.15 Repayment rate of five co – operative banks 116 4.16 Repayment rate of Women SHGs and the average 117 repayment rate of Five co – operative banks 4.17 Number of SHG families insured 121 4.18 Number of trainees in skill training 130 4.19 Number of participants in home nurse training 132 4.20 Number of participants in REDP 133 4.21 Number of participants in EDP 135 4.22 Year wise indices of people’s participation in MEDP 138 4.23 Number of participants in awareness generation 144 programme 4.24 Number of participants in training programme 145 4.25 Number of sanitary projects undertaken by SHGs 150 4.26 Number of houses constructed by SHGs 151 4.27 Number of water tanks constructed by SHGs 152 4.28 Number of drinking water schemes undertaken by SHGs 153 4.29 Number of beneficiaries of monthly aid programme under 154 SHGs 4.30 Number of projects undertaken by SHGs and grama 155 panchayats 4.31 Number of houses constructed by SHGs and grama 157 panchayats 4.32 Number of drinking water schemes by SHGs and grama 160 panchayats 4.33 Number of beneficiaries of aid programme under SHG and 161 gramapanchayats 5.1 Training programme 2012 -13 170 5.2 Skill development programme in 2012 -13 171 5.3 Training, skill development and income generation 176 programmes by SHG in 2012 -13 5.4 Participation of women in skill training undertaken by 177 SHG under CDP 5.5 Number of participants in various programmes 178 5.6 Year wise indices of women participation in training 181 5.7 Number of women SHGs promoted by SHG 184 5.8 Growth of small savings by women SHGs under SHG 185 5.9 Total credit, internel lending and bank loans by women 189 SHGs 5.10 Total credit – bank loan ratio of women SHGs 191 5.11 Total credit – bank loan radio of women SHGs general and 192 women SHGs 5.12 Repayment rate of small loans by women SHGs 195 5.13 Repayment rate of WomenSHGs general and women 196 SHGs under SHG 6.1 Distribution of land area among the families 213 6.2 percentage reduction in medical expenses 215 6.3 Improvement in the quality of life 217 6.4 Chi square table 218 6.5 Decrease in occurrence of pests and plant diseases 219 6.6 Improvement in the quality of product 220 6.7 Chi square Table 221 6.8 Increase in yearly production 222 6.9 Chi square Table 223 6.10 Decrease in the overall cost of cultivation 224 6.11 Percentage increase in the labour cost 225

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure. Page Title No No. 4.1 Growth of Women SHGs under SHG 90 4.2 Growth of Women SHGs under SHG and NHGs under 92 SHG 4.3 Growth of internal lending by the Women SHGs under 98 SHG 4.4 Year wise growth of bank loans availed by the SHGs 101 4.5 Repayment rates on small loans Women SHGs and 115 NHGs 4.6 Repayment rates- Women SHGs and co – operative 118 banks compared 4.7 Premium remitted and claims distributed among SHG 122 member families 4.8 Number of trainees under skill training 131 4.9 Number of participants in REDP 134 4.10 Number of participants in EDP 136 4.11 Number of participants in training programme under 146 HRD 4.12 Number of sanitary projects by SHG and grama 156 panchayats 4.13 Number of houses constructed by SHG and grama 159 panchayats 5.1 Small savings mobilized by women SHGs under SHG 186

5.2 Total credit bank loan ratio of Women SHGs general 193 and women SHGs 5.3 Repayment rates of SHGs general and women SHGs 197 6.1 Distribution of land area among families 214

ABBREVIATIONS

NAYE - National Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs

WASME - World Assembly of Small and Medium

Entrepreneurs),

EDP - Entrepreneurship Development Programmes

R E D P - Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme

MEDP - Micro Enterprises Development Programme

HRM - human resources development

AGP - Awareness Generation Programme

SSI - Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan

CDP - Capacity Development Programme

AGP - Awareness Generation Programme

H N T - Home Nurse Training

EDP - Enterprises Development Programme

HRD - Human Resources Development

REDP - Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme

FIRB - Furrow irrigated raised bed

APEDA - Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export

Development Authority

CHAPTER - I INTRODUCTION

The development of mankind was the major concern of economic thinkers and policy makers of all the time all over the world. It was natural for them to have a hard look at the achievements and failures in the pursuit of development. The efforts of the mankind in this direction succeed and the development is materialized only when various socio- economic problems like poverty, unemployment, gender inequality, illiteracy etc. are completely eradicated.

The conventional agent of development in most of the countries was the state. Formulation of policies and implementation of various programmes for achieving the economic development of the country was considered to be the prime responsibility of the state. There was a widespread belief over the past four decades that development was a primary task of the government. The people have been expected to put their faith and resources in to the government in return for which the government promised to bestow up on the people the gift of development. This belief arose out of the false assessment of the capacity of the government in materializing development and also due to the lack of awareness about the varied nature of the term development. Even in the last decades of the 20th century, in many of the world countries, the government at different levels (national level, state level and at the local level) had assumed almost the total control over the commanding heights of the economy hut miserably failed to alleviate poverty and unemployment. It was very well recognized by the different writers on development that the state action alone cannot he successful in alleviating poverty and unemployment and also in improving the status of the disadvantaged groups in the society.

Program Like many other developing countries. India also has organized various rural development programmes since independence hut they have only partially succeeded. Various rural development and employment programmes like the Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP ), the National Rural Employment Program ( NREP ) and the Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Program ( RLEGP) were launched in India since early 1980’s. They were formulated with the various objectives of providing employment, creating Productive and durable assets and improving the overall quality of life in the rural areas. They had other objectives as well like improvement of wages in the slack season, stabilization of wages at the stipulated minimum wage level and raising the agricultural output as well as demand for labor in the long run. The success of the above programmes depends on the extent to which assets in agriculture and other related sectors are actually created. The nature and incidence of unemployment and poverty arc decided by the functioning of the labor market and also some other factors in the rural economy. It was generally noted that in the agriculturally developed regions of the country there was the high wage rates hut it coincided with higher levels of unemployment and lower levels of work participation. In the agriculturally backward regions of the country, there was the low wage rates and also high unemployment." Therefore it is suggested that there should be diverse orientations for the rural development programmes in the backward regions and in the developed regions of the country. Intervention through the rural development programmes should ensure adequate employment to the workers at the minimum wage rate. For this the benefit from rural development programmes should reach those who participated in the process of creation of assets in the relevant area. This, to a large extent, depends on the nature of agencies who are assigned the responsibility of executing the work and also on factors like

2 the allocation of adequate funds - commensurate with the dimension of the problem of poverty and unemployment specific to the region - and proper institutional arrangements to ensure effective planning, implementation and monitoring at different levels.

However, the various development and employment programmes in India, initiated by the government since independence, have not reduced poverty and unemployment substantially. The problems of hunger, malnutrition, unemployment, ill health gender inequality, illiteracy etc. continue to persist in the different parts of the country, even though the intensity of such problems has been reduced in the recent years. The development experts felt that the various rural development programmes failed to produce satisfactory results due to the lack of adequate involvement of the people for whom the programmes were meant.

There was the need for micro level institutional arrangements to involve the people in the formulation, implementation and monitoring of such programmes. In the 1980s the development role of the civil society was very well recognized. Firstly, the private business and the market forces were rediscovered. Equally important but more recent came an acknowledgement that SHG have an important development role in their own right. Gradually, there came the primary understanding That government, business and SHG s have essential roles in development along with the organizations which may he referred to as the ‘fourth sector* - the people's organizations. Any organization that is (SHG) governmental and non profit is generally considered to be an SHG or VO. Today, many writers on development and various agencies working in the Head of development consider Non-governmental Organizations

(SHGs), SHGs to be more successful in reaching out to the poor and in alleviating poverty. SHGs can play key the role in motivating the people and supervising the distribution of resources with a view to ensure its proper utilization. They organized projects matching to the local conditions and supplied local know how on the various factors affecting productivity and marketing. Development practitioners, government officials and foreign donors consider that Non Governmental Organizations , thy virtue of being small, flexible, innovative and participatory, more successful in reaching the poor and in poverty alleviation. This led to the expansion and diversification of the activities of SHGs and government and external donors have come up to fund them extensively.

The term SHGs has been used to refer to any organization that is not at all a direct division of any national or state government and which is voluntary in nature. Presently, they are considered as highly significant vehicles of development. A Voluntary Organization is a social entity which is committed to activities and programmes oriented towards change in the prevailing set of conditions - social, economic, political or cultural. they work for a specific type of change in the society leading to community development and which may he visualized in various fields like alleviation of poverty, generating employment to villagers, ensuring sufficient fertile land to the village people, providing adequate irrigation water, better education, health care and eliminating social or caste discriminations.

SHGs in most countries carry out a variety of programmes aiming to provide the basic needs of the people in the country, even though they do not have a clear idea of the term’ development’. The role and

4 relevance of SHGs in a developing country like India have increased substantially in the recent years on account of several reasons. Firstly, a major shift took place in India in the approach to development since 1991 with the launching of the ‘New Economic Policy’ - a policy with which there occurred a change to the market derived growth and development. It is very important that state, the conventional agent of development, is being overtaken by the emerging international institutions and the market forces. Moreover, the modernization or catching up with the advanced countries, which was the classic aim of development earlier, is in question because, modernization is no longer an obvious ambition of many societies at present. Modernization seems to be unattractive in view of ecological problems, severe consequences of technological advancement and many other similar issues. Along with the decisive shift in the approach to development, there arose a lot of problems like the ecological and social imbalances, lack of purchasing power, lack of opportunities to acquire the purchasing power, lack of requisite skills to utilize the opportunities and the lack of proper educational facilities to acquire changing skills. The above problems can be successfully tackled if there has been proper and effective organization of the people especially that of the weaker sections in the society. The SHGs have been successful in organizing the p-xeric properly and effectively and in enabling them to receive the benefit of economic development. SHGs arc cost effective and efficient service providers as compared to public agencies and the government. They have been successful in reaching those poor people who were not yet reached by the market process or by the state. Secondly, the popularity of SHGs with the government and other official aid agencies increased in the recent years as a response to the recent development in economic and political thinking.

There have been some favourable signals from the international financial institutions for increasing the participation of the SHGs in the development programmes in the developing countries and the UDCs. The SHG initiative was seriously studied and applauded for their timely and constructive interventions in the development projects in the Third World. They were being conceived as social and cultural catalysts for initiating change in the attitudes and perceptions of the people, for bringing people in to the modem stream and socially empowering them to redesign their own life ways and practices to confront the social and economic backwardness. The development policy of aid agencies like World Bank and aid transfers from them came to be dominated by the ‘New Policy Agenda’ which gave a prominent role the SHGs in poverty alleviation, social welfare and the development of the civil society. Thirdly, various international donor agencies and consortia discovered SHGs as the most effective instrument for promoting their interest in penetrating the Third World economies and particularly their rural interiors. SHGs are somewhat stable groups with defined activities and programmes and have, barring some exceptions, an urge and also an exposure to horizontal and sometimes vertical linkages within and across their chosen sectors of activity.

They have an image different and less threatening than that of the private industries or government bureaucracies. Under the above circumstances, it can he understood that when the various rural development and employment programmes or projects are undertaken, the full benefits of wage to the workers, the quality of assets and non escalation in the cost of the work could be ensured if SHGs arc involved extensively in executing the works. The advance payment on the work / project could he made to them and they can take the responsibility of

6 executing the work and paying the minimum wages ( partly in kind and partly in cash ) in accordance with the specifications. Besides they could motivate the beneficiaries of individual assets and involve them fully in the creation of these assets. All the materials possible and required could be manufactured with the full participation of beneficiaries.

It leads to more gains in employment and income to the beneficiaries. If SHGs are involved in executing the rural development programmes, there can be more scope for increasing wages in the agricultural off season as they employed local labor and since they are nonprofit organizations. Moreover, the identification of beneficiaries could be clone with people’s knowledge and participation and therefore, the leakages due to the selection of non poor beneficiaries could be plugged. This will eliminate the other implementation problems like ensuring the quality of assets and organizing the individual beneficiaries in getting the sanctioned assets completed as SHGs are a body of people devoted to the welfare of the poor and not subject to the external control of any donor agency or governmental agency. SHGs are mostly internal organizations with the active involvement of volunteering people in a particular area or locality. Their small size, independence and the focused value commitments give them a capacity for social and Institutional innovation. Moreover, they serve as the forums for defining, testing and propagating ideas and values.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY SHGs have gained recognition in the modem economic societies as new channels of education, empowerment and economic dynamism. Voluntary action was historically and philosophically conceived as intrinsic to that of a mediation role on safeguarding the local resources

7 and protecting the local interest and rights. The role and relevance of the voluntary sector was clear from the fact that the people and the society’s conscious about development have recognized and accepted the voluntary organizations as much more efficient and less expensive in promoting development.

The voluntary organizations specialize in the integrative people's power and they have a value commitment to the society which is its distinctive strength. A healthy voluntary sector is characterized by a substantial number and variety of independent voluntary organizations representing an array of distinctive and often conflicting commitments. The voluntary sector is considered as an independent, autonomous and vibrant sector which can work on social and development problems of the country with the freedom that the government institutions do not have and a sense of commitment and concern for the people that the business sector do not care for Development needs a capacity in wealth creation and entrepreneurship and substantial inputs of creativity, innovation, self direction and the voluntary action. The voluntary sector has the advantage in mobilizing voluntary social energy and in stimulating the social innovation. The realm of the individual voluntary organizations is small and therefore they are able to define positions more clearly, to press for innovative solutions and experiment in ways that government finds difficult. Moreover the strength of the voluntary sector is found in the diversity of its constituent organizations and their capacity for independent action. Voluntary agencies can reach out and form alliances more easily than the other types of organizations even though the alliances often become unstable.

There was a wave of voluntarism throughout the world in the 20lh century with a quite distinctive role in promoting development SHGs provided an opportunity for different classes of people, especially the weaker sections, to organize systematically for collective action in order to secure their minimum basic needs. They provide a strong public opinion in this regard through advocacy for common good. Moreover government and the funding agencies now insist on people's participation in the planning and the implementation of development projects.

There has been a large number of SHGs or voluntary organizations in the different parts of Tamilnadu working to promote economic and community development in a sustainable manner through people’s participation and voluntary action. Initially, the development perspective of SHGs in Tamilnadu was of charity and welfare. It was the most traditional approach under which they provided the materials and assistance to the needy people. Though this approach was influential and popular, it did not have the inn built power to solve the problems in the society which were chronic, vast, socio economic and political in nature. Consequently, in the recent years there occurred a major shift in the development perspective of SHGs in Tamilnadu. The current role of SHGs is to provide a set up or institutional arrangement for promoting people's initiative and active participation in the development process and in the efforts towards national integration.

The number of SHG s has increased substantially in Tamilnadu in the recent years due to their popularity with the government and the official aid agencies. Again the development policy of international aid agencies like the World Bank has come to he dominated by a ‘New Policy Agenda which gave a prominent role to the SHGs in poverty

9 alleviation, social welfare and the development of the civil society. Moreover, the “New Economic Policy’ implemented in the country since 1991 identified markets and the private sector as more efficient in providing various goods and services and in achieving rapid economic development. This was equally applied to the community and social services provided especially to weaker sections in the society with SHGs gradually taking over this role from the state. Therefore, it is significant to study the role of SHGs in the economic and community development of Tamilnadu.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY In 1990s, there occurred a strong tendency towards innovation and change in values, institutions and technologies. It is the result of new and sophisticated idea that, if transformation and the economic development of the society are to take place, it must come as a consequence of voluntary action, an act of human commitment to collective survival, driven by a vision that transcends the behaviors conditioned by the existing institutions and cultures. The SHGs and SHGs are the instruments through which the citizen volunteers establish an identity and legal recognition for the collective endeavors. SHGs provide their organizational support system and their means of aggregating resources for endeavors that require more than individual action.

The SHGs have a variety of strategic orientations. Some of them provide relief and welfare services to alleviate the immediate suffering of the people who are subject to a multitude of economic and social backwardness. Some other SHGs engage in community development interventions in order to build capacity for self help action. Another category of SHGs seek to change specific institutions and policies in

10 support more just, sustainable and inclusive developmental outcomes. Yet another category of SHGs interact in order to facilitate broadly based people's movements driven by social action based on the principles of sustainability and environment protection. Thus the greatest change and innovation took place in the realm of the civil society and most particularly in the realm of voluntary sector - of the citizen volunteer and organizations that arc formed and led by citizen volunteers.

The SHGs have the advantages of organizational flexibility, informal work style, close engagement with grass roots communities and delivery of services to people at lower costs. They work to bring about a peculiar type of transformation in the individuals and the society and it is the society led equitable development transformation based on the fundamental principles of sustainability and people's participation. SHGs arc cost effective in providing community assets, they are efficient service providers and they are successful in reaching out to those weaker and downtrodden sections of the population who could not be reached by the market mechanism or by the state in the process of economic development. SHGs could do development better and they could also influence the perceptions of the individuals towards what constituted better and sustainable development.

SHGs occupied a major role in achieving economic and community development of Tamilnadu on account of several reasons. Firstly, there was a shift in the development perspective of SHGs s in Tamilnadu from charity and welfare to sustainable development and later to empowerment. The charity and welfare approach can never tackle the root causes of various socio-economic problems. The current requirement is the involvement of SHGs s in promoting individual initiatives and

11 active participation in development process and in the national integration. Secondly, there was a shift in the role of SHGs from direct implementation to that of supporting grass roots organizations. The SHGs could collaborate with the government in different ways and it can he visualized in their activities undertaken in the common interest of all the members in the society. The scope of the study has been due to the fact that,

SHGs can enable the people to access the government programmes. SHGs can directly access the government programmes for the benefit of the poor and the marginalized in the society. SHGs can advocate and lobby the government and the individuals to change their perceptions as to what is sustainable and better development.

The present study has been designed as the case study of the Women self help groups at Thiruvarur district in the field of economic and community development. The area selected for the study has been backward district of Tamilnadu. The community development interventions of SHGs mainly take place. The study has covered the SHG community development interventions over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM During the planning area several efforts were made by the Government of India to increase the role of women and to improve the status of women. Self-Help Groups (SHGs) are increasingly becoming very important method of organizing women to take action and transform their situation. The strength of Self Help Groups is based upon the fact

12 that the people who are facing problems are likely to be the most committed to solve them. The inability of formal credit institutions to cover rural poor is generally attributed to high cost of administering the large number of small loans. This has promoted large number of Non Government Organisations (NGOs) to enter the rural credit scheme for organizing the poor into informal groups. For mutual help, these groups are instrumental in promoting informal structure of the poor to help them save and promote self reliance in financing these needs through Self Help Groups. But still poor have financial crisis. Their poverty still persists. In this context study is proposed to carry out further stuffy in micro financing.

Self Help Groups have emerged as one of the major strategies for the convergence of services and activities different Self Help Groups in different states of the country have focused on, Skill development, Awareness generation, Gaining access to credit from financial institutional for micro enterprise projects and inculcation of thrift and management of credit for the economically deprived sections of women and so on. Hence, it is of considerable interest to study the role of Self- Help Groups in the socio-economic status and community development of women in Thiruvarur District.

RESEARCH ISSUES The SHGs or the voluntary sector organizations have a distinctive role as catalysts of systems change. They are the instruments through which citizen volunteers or people's organizations establish an identity and the legal recognition for collective endeavors. The people’s organizations arc of special importance to the people centered development vision.

The following research issues have been raised in the present study with reference to the functioning of Women self help groups in the field of economic and community development services in the Thiruvarur district of Tamilnadu. How much SHG has been efficient in providing the economic and community development services to the poor and needy compared to the other agencies providing the similar services. Has SHG been able to realize the objectives for which it has been basically constituted. How much SHG has contributed to the economic and community development by creating awareness, providing training and capacity building, promoting the women empowerment and achieving a sustainable and equitable development? How far SHG has been successful in organizing the Pixar and weaker sections of the society in obtaining resources for development from the government and also from other channels.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The SHGs are generally considered to be more efficient in providing social services to the poor and in promoting community development. The present study has found it crucial to examine the various aspects of SHG activity and to study how these interactions with the civil society at different levels ultimately pave the way for the achievement of the economic and community development of the District. The present study has set the following objectives: To examine how much SHG, the local SHG, has been efficient in providing social and community development services to the poor and needy.

To examine whether SHGs have been able to achieve the objectives for which it has been basically constituted. To study how far SHGs have been successful in carrying out its community development programmes and activities. To study how much SHGs have contributed to the economic and community development by creating awareness, providing training and capacity building, promoting women empowerment and achieving a sustainable and equitable development. To examine how far SHGs have been successful in organizing the poor and weaker sections of the society in obtaining the resources for development from the government and also from other channels.

RESEARCH HYPOTHESES The present study has set three hypotheses, relating to the functioning of PDS in the Head of economic and community development, which may be empirically tested with the help of supporting data. The research hypotheses of the study have been the following SHGs has been more efficient in providing the economic and community development services to the poor and the weaker sections of the population. SHGs has been playing a crucial role in achieving economic and community development by creating awareness among the poor people, promoting employment, self employment and income generating activities through micro finance, micro enterprises development, and human resources development and by promoting women development and empowerment.

SHGs has been able to better the quality of life and living standards of the poor and the marginalized people by popularizing and promoting eco friendly organic farming practices in agriculture.

METHODOLOGY Large number of SHGs has been working in Tamilnadu in the field of economic and community development. There has been no uniformity in the state with respect to either the pattern of organization of SHGs or the development interventions they make. The development interventions of the various agencies are highly required in those places and legalities which remained socially and economically most backward. Therefore, the geographical area selected for the study of the relevance of development interventions of women SHGs, was Thiruvarur district. Therefore, the present study has been designed as a case study of the economic and community development interventions of Women SHG in the Thiruvarur district.

DATA REQUIREMENT AND DATA SOURCE Since the study has been designed as a ‘case study’. The primary data and secondary data have been required for the study. SHGs intended to bring about the uplift of the poor and weaker sections of the society and therefore had development interventions in such societies. While conducting the survey, the people in such societies would not be able to provide the complete information required for the study. Therefore, the published secondary data from SHGs have been used in the study. However, secondary data alone would be insufficient to disclose the necessary information and make the study complete.

Therefore, primary data on the economic and community development interventions of SHG have also been collected through a field survey. The secondary data have been collected from both the published and also from unpublished data records of the Thiruvarur District Hand Book. The secondary data on the economic and community development interventions of the Women SHGs have been collected from their annual development and project reports. The secondary data on the disbursement of micro credit by the co-operative banks and the rates of repayment on such small loans in the SHGs have been collected from the annual reports of the cooperative banks. Again, a field survey was conducted and primary data have been collected on the advantages of organic farming from a sample size of hundred family units engaged in organic farming practices.

SAMPLE SIZE The non-probability sampling design has been used in the selection of a sample size of 100 SHGs units. A total of 1702 SHGs have adopted the practices in the Thiruvarur district and they have been spread over a wide geographical area and therefore, the criterion of selection sample family units has been accessibility. From among the population consisting of 1702 SHGs units which have adopted in the Thiruvarur District. 100 easily accessible and most convenient SHG units have been selected to constitute the sample size and information and data have been collected on the advantages from the 100 sample SHG units.

The primary data have been collected by conducting personal interviews with the members of the selected sample family units using interview schedule. The questions in the interview schedule have been carefully designed in order to bring out the required information on the different aspects and the advantages of organic farming. The 17 questionnaire used for conducting the survey has been given in the appendix.

ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK The primary and secondary data collected have been refined and presented in the form of statistical tables for easy observation, comparison and analysis. Further, for the better understanding and easy analysis of the variables in the data, various diagrammatic presentation of the data in statistics like time series graph, simple bar chart, multiple bar charts and the Lorenz curve have been used. The presentation of data in the form of graphs and charts has enabled easy understanding of the trend growth in the variables and other relationships among the variables.

In order to make the analysis of the both primary and secondary data and to establish the trend growth rate and other features of the variables observed in the data, various statistical, simple linear regression model and simple correlation model have been used. To test the statistical significance of regression coefficients, the one tailed and two tailed ‘f Test has been used. The ANOVA test has been used for the analysis of variance of the samples and for comparing them for variance. The statistical significance of the equalities and inequalities in the values of the variables have been tested using the technique of Testing of Hypothesis. Again, for testing the correlation and also the independence between the values of the variables, (The chi square test has been used. To make the analysis of the inequality in the distribution in the values of variables and explain it. The Lorenz Curve has been used. Further, in the study, certain other types of data have been subject to the analysis using the Index Wise Description method.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK The various concepts and their definitions used in the present study, their meaning as understood in the general situations and their implications as applied in the context of the present study, have been given in the conceptual framework.

DEVELOPMENT Development may defined as the organized intervention in collective affairs according to a standard of improvement. What constitutes improvement and what is the appropriate intervention may vary according to the culture, class, historical context and relations of power. Development is an approximation of modernization and the modernization is the rational transformation of the social, economic and political order of the society.

The classical economists regarded development as the appropriate relationship between agriculture and the industry. According to Cowen and Shelton the term development referred to remedies for the shortcomings and maladies of progress. The modem economic thinkers regarded development as approximately equal to that of economic growth with mechanization and industrialization as parts of it. In the present study development is understood as a process by which attention is being given to the different sectors of the economy including that of institutional framework, provision of infrastructure such as power, transport and communications and solution of problems in population and agriculture. The lineages of development are quite mixed. It includes the application of science and technology to collective organization and also managing the changes that arise from the application of science and technology. Development virtually included an element of reflexivity and

19 it ranges from infrastructure works (roads, railways, canals, dams, ports) to the industrial policy, the welfare state, the new economic policy, the colonial economics and the Keynesian demand management.

Development serves as a mirror of changing economic and social capacities, priorities and choices. Thus in any economic society, development means more than the economic growth and includes a transformation of the society towards the solution of the problems of rural/urban disparities, the regional inequality, ethnic mobilization, unequal distribution of income and wealth and the population growth.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Community development, which was a subsidiary theme in colonial times and modernization, received a new emphasis with the alternative development. Community development is a process of change from traditional way of living of rural communities to a progressive way of living ; a method by which people can be assisted to develop themselves on their own capacity and resources; a program for accomplishing certain activities for the welfare of the rural people; a movement for progress with a certain ideological context. Community development program was the first intervention strategy of directed change at the national level to enable the rural society to experience transformation in its social and economic life.1'The essential element of community development is the participation by the people themselves in the efforts to improve their level of living and the provision of the technical and other services so as to encourage initiative, self help and mutual help. The movement combines a faith in democracy and social justice on the one hand and in service and technology on the other.16 In the present study the term community development is used to mean a

20 process which is based on the faith that the rural people have the capacity to improve, if helped. The state should create favorable conditions and give direction through self exerted leadership and group effort.

It is based on the villagers’ needs and the community has to be the basic unit. The community development program laid emphasis on building of infrastructure in the rural areas with the participation of the rural communities and promotes rural development in a planned manner.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT In the development scenario, there is a conflict arising out of the recognition that growth in material well being has its implications on the environment. As a result, there emerged the concept of sustainable development. The sustainable development can he characterized hy the presence of Conflict between human well being and the protection of the nature. Conflict between the poor and the rich. Conflict between the interests of the present generation and the interests of the future generation. Conflict between a local and a global focus.

As result of these there emerged a conflict between those called ‘technicsts’ (both social and natural scientists) who are looking for the technical solutions to the environment problems and those called ‘humanists’ who look towards the realm of politics for the solution. Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising on the ability of the future generation to meet their own needs. Sustainable development is development which is environmentally sustainable, economically

21 sustainable and socially/culturally sustainable.'' In the present study, the term sustainable development is used to mean a development that takes place without damaging the environment and that the present generation does not compromise on the needs of the future generation. It is the real economic development with increased productivity and efficiency, making the economy self sufficient, self reliant an improving the quality of life without affecting the balance of the nature. The need for sustainable development emerges from the concern for environment. The economic growth of the countries in the future is likely to be endangered if the limited resources are exhausted by way of reckless exploitation.

NON- GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS The diversity in the nature of SHGs stands in the way of presenting any simple definition of them. The term SHG is really a catchword for an enormous variety of structures pursuing diverse strategies, of widely different sizes, aims, missions and defies definition because of this diversity. SHGs include many groups and institutions that are entirely or largely independent of government and that have primarily humanitarian or cooperative rather than commercial objectives. An SHG is a nonprofit making service oriented/development oriented organization, either for the benefit of members ( a grass cart organization ) or of the other members of the population ( an agency) It is an organization of private individuals who believe in certain principles and structure their activities to bring about development to communities they are servicing. SHG is an organization or group of people working independent of any external control with the specific objectives and aims to fulfill tasks that oriented to bring about desirable change in a community or area or situation.

SHG was considered as an organization committed to the root causes of problems of trying to better the quality of life, especially for the poor, the oppressed and the marginalized in the urban and the rural areas .Any organization which is not established by intergovernmental agreement shall be considered as a Non Governmental Organization. SHGs could he understood as a team of people with the similar interest, freely joining hands to bring about improvement or changes in the society through the organized and collective efforts.

SELF HELP GROUPS Self Help Group is a homogeneous group of poor, women, users etc. This group is voluntary one formed on the areas of common interest so that they can think, organize and operate for their development. SHGs organize very poor people who do not have access to the financial system in the organized sector. An SHG is an informal association of 10-15 people who voluntarily come together for the business of saving and credit and to enhance member's financial security as primary focus and on the other the common interests of members such as the area development, awareness, motivation leadership, training and associating in other social intermediation programmes for the benefit of the entire community. An SI IG is a group of people that meets regularly to discuss the issues of interest to them and to look at solutions of commonly experienced problems.

In the present study, the term Self Help Group is used to understand the same meaning as above. An SHG is understood as an informal association of a small group of people who have voluntarily come together to think, organize and operate for their development and the enhancement of their financial security by promoting savings, credit and the access to the Financial system in the organized sector.

MICRO FINANCE Micro Finance refers to the small savings, credit and insurance services extended to the socially and economically disadvantaged segments of the society.

Micro finance refers to the entire range the financial and non financial services including the skill up gradation and the entrepreneurship development rendered Lo the poor for enabling them to overcome the poverty. Micro finance is the provision of financial services to the low income households.

In the present study, the term micro finance has been used to understand the provision of savings, credit and the other financial services of very small quantity to the socially and economically disadvantaged and low income households for enabling them to overcome their poverty.

ORGANIC FARMING The term organic farming may be understood as a method of farming which excludes completely the application of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides etc. and has been primarily based on the principles of using natural organic inputs and biological plant protection methods. The proper practice of organic farming methods will eliminate or reduce the water pollution and will help conserve water and soil on the farm thereby enhancing sustainability and agro bio diversity.

WATERSHED DEVELOPMENT The term watershed development has been used in the study to represent a holistic approach including programmes for soil and moisture conservation, rain water harvesting, a forestation, horticulture, pasture development and the up gradation of the community land resources. The immediate effect of watershed development program is an increase in the ground water and the bio mass. It leads to socio economic changes in the specified area, especially in agriculture and animal husbandry. The term watershed management is getting wide popularity in India and it is used to mean the storage and the re harvesting of the rain runoff by appropriate management of natural and manmade watersheds.

RAIN WATER HARVESTING Rain water harvesting is a technique of increasing the recharge of ground water by capturing and storing rain water in structures such as dug wells, the percolation pits and check dams. Rain water is stored in ground water reservoirs by adopting artificial recharge techniques to meet the household needs through storage in tanks.

CHAPTER SCHEME

1. The first chapter is the introductory chapter and the topic of study has been introduced and familiarized and also the relevance, scope and the coverage of the research study have been described. The Research Design and the methodological aspects of the study are also described in the introductory chapter. 2. It deals with an overview of Thiruvarur District and the relevant details are discussed. 3. The third chapter is the Overview of Literature in which the review of various books and articles on the Non Governmental

Organizations and their activities have been attempted. Also, the books and the articles on the critical appraisal of the various activities of SHGs have been reviewed in this chapter 4. The fourth chapter is basically a background review of the SHGs. In this chapter, SHGs and the Bank linkage programme and structural aspects of SHGs and organisation, have been discussed. 5. The fifth chapter is Women is concerned with the Development which comprises of the women development and empowerment interventions of. Even though, women development and empowerment and parts of community development itself, they have been discussed in greater detail. 6. The sixth chapter deals with SHGs and significant contribution to social and economic improvement of the member households of SHGs, and the details are presented here. 7. Last chapter deals with present the findings of the study and the research, recommendations have been made besides the conclusions of the study.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

It has been felt that the study has got certain limitations. First of all the period of study has been limited to eight years from 2005-2006 to 2012-13 due to the non availability of data for the years prior to 2005-2006. The study has been limited mainly to the Thiruvarur district only. There has been certain limitations with respect to the availability of secondary of data because of the lack of expertise on the part of the people involved in the collection, compilation and the storing of

the data on the various programmes and projects organized and implemented by PDS. The primary data were selected from the SHGs. They were half reluctant to disclose the complete information in the process of primary data collection. The people in the Thiruvarur, who have been covered in the survey, have not been so familiar with keeping of proper accounts regarding the output, income expenditure etc and they could convey only the approximate changes in the values of the variables projected in the study. In spite of all these limitations, all the efforts have been made to accomplish the stated objectives of the study and to make the study genuine.

CHAPTER – II PROFILE OF THIRUVARUR DISTRICT

Thiruvarur also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in Tiruvarur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Tiruvarur district and Tiruvarur taluk. The town was one of the five traditional capitals of the Chola empire, with one of the emperors of the dynasty, Kulothunga Chola I, having it as his capital. The town is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Later Pandyas, Vijayanagar Empire, Marathas and the British. The town is known for the Thyagaraja temple, and the annual chariot festival held in the month of April. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing 300 tonnes (660,000 lb) and measuring 90 feet (27 m) tall is the largest temple chariot in Tamil Nadu. Thiruvarur is the birthplace of Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, popularly known as the Trinity of Carnatic music of the 18th century CE. Thiruvarur was a part of Thanjavur district till 1991 and Nagapattinam district until 1997 it became the headquarters of Tiruvarur district when it was carved out of Nagapattinam district in 1997. The Odambokki river passes through the centre of the town. Thiruvarur covers an area of 10.47 km2 (4.04 sq mi) and had a population of 58,301 as of 2011. It is administered by a first grade municipality. The town is a part of the Cauvery delta region and agriculture is the major occupation. Roadways are the major means of transportation with a total of 94.06 km (58.45 mi) of district roads including three national highways passing through the town.

Thiruvarur District is one of the 32 districts in the Tamil Nadu state of India. The district occupies an area of 2161 km. It lies between Nagapattinam district on the east and Thanjavur District on the west, and is bounded by the Palk Strait on the south. The district headquarters is at Thiruvarur town. As of 2011, the district had a population of 1,264,277 with a sex-ratio of 1,017 females for every 1,000 males.

The District of Tiruvarur was carved out as a separate district by detaching Valangaiman Taluk from Thanjavur District and Thiruvarur, Nannilam, Kudavasal, Needamangalam, Mannargudi , Thiruthuraipoondi Taluks from Nagappatinam District on 01.01.1997. There are 2 Revenue Divisions, 7 Taluks, 10 Community Development Blocks, 3 Municipalties and 7 Town Panchayats in Thiruvarur District.

DEMOGRAPHICS According to 2011 census, Thiruvarur district had a population of 1,264,277 with a sex-ratio of 1,017 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929.[2] A total of 121,973 were under the age of six, constituting 62,280 males and 59,693 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 34.08% and .24% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the district was 74.86%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The district had a total of 327,219 households. There were a total of 540,168 workers, comprising 60,508 cultivators, 200,126 main agricultural labourers, 7,264 in house hold industries, 144,527 other workers, 127,743 marginal workers, 9,375 marginal cultivators, 95,062 marginal agricultural labourers, 3,176 marginal workers in household industries and 20,130 other marginal workers.

HISTORY The Thiruvarur district, along with the Nagapattinam district was part of the Thanjavur District before 1991. After that, the present Taluks of Thiruvarur district and Nagapattinam district were separated from the Thanjavur District, and formed the Nagapattinam district. The present Thiruvarur district was formed in 1997 by trifurcating the then Thanjavur District. Major towns are Thiruvarur, Thiruthuraipoondi, Nachikulam, Muthupettai, Mannargudi.

ADMINISTRATION The District of Tiruvarur was carved out as a separate district by detaching Valangaiman Taluk from Thanjavur District and Thiruvarur, Nannilam, Kudavasal, Needamangalam, Mannargudi , Thiruthuraipoondi Taluks from Nagappatinam District on 01.01.1997. There are 2 Revenue Divisions, 7 Taluks, 10 Community Development Blocks, 3 Municipalties and 7 Town Panchayats in Thiruvarur District. Thiruvarur district is made up of seven taluks: ¾ Kudavasal ¾ Mannargudi ¾ Nannilam ¾ Needamangalam ¾ Thiruthuraipoondi ¾ Thiruvarur ¾ Valangaiman

ECONOMY Thiruvarur lies in the Kaveri River basin and the main occupation of the inhabitants of the town and surrounding regions

30 is agriculture. More than 70% of the workforce is involved in agriculture; 14% being cultivators and rest are agricultural labourers. Paddy is cultivated in three seasons namely Kuruvai (June–August), Samba (August–January) and Thaladi (January–March). The daily wages of the agricultural labourers is more than the rates fixed by the Tamil Nadu government, but due to the decline in number of days of work, the income levels are lower. As of 1998, the male labourers were employed 150 days a year, while the female labourers for 120 days. A government report in 2006 put these numbers at 120 and 100 days respectively. Due to the discontinuity in the working days, the labourers migrate to other states like Gujarat and Tamilnadu. They also shift to other professions like construction industry in the urban centres and textile industry in the district. There are no industrial estates in the town and the district – as of 2012, a government proposal is formulated to develop one at Vaippur village. Modern agricultural tools like hullers have replaced labourers and reduce the profit margin of small traders and labourers. There are no cooperative societies who acquire the farm products and the District Purchasing Centre, operated by the government of Tamil Nadu is the major procurer.

Being an agricultural town, the predominant industries are agriculture based like modern rice milling, palm oil refinery, poultry, live stock and coir based. Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation operating a modern rice mill and South India Edible Oil involved in refining oil are the large scale industries in the town. There are small service enterprises involved in automobile servicing, hotels, hospitals, boat repairing and nylon fishnet repairing. There is a weekly market at Thanjai Salai and a daily market maintained by the municipality, where vegetables and fish are sold.

All major nationalized banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and private banks like ICICI Bank, City Union Bankhave their branches in Thiruvarur. Kumbakonam Co-operative Bank, Tiruvarur Co- operative Bank and Primary Agriculture Bank are the cooperative banks that have their branches in the town. All these banks have their Automated teller machines located in various parts of the town.

CULTURE THYAGARAJA TEMPLE The ancient Thyagaraja Temple at Thiruvarur is dedicated to the Somaskanda aspect of Shiva. Thygaraja is the iconic form of Somaskanda and is believed to have spread widely from the 10th century CE, the period coinciding the reign of Raja Raja Chola. The temple complex spanning over an area of 20 acres (81,000 m) has shrines dedicated to Vanmikanathar, Thyagaraja, Kamalaamba and numerous other deities. Vanmikinathar is believed to have arisen from an anthill and from the trumpet flower, Bignonia Chelenoides. The Kamalalayam temple tank covers around 33 acres (130,000 m), making it one of the largest in the country. The temple chariot is the largest of its kind in Tamil Nadu. Thyagaraja is believed to have performed 364 miracles in Thiruvarur similar to the 64 performed at Madurai Meenakshi Temple. Pilgrims take a holy dip in the tank during Hindu auspicious occasions like equinox and eclipse. The temple is also classified as Saptha Vidangam, meaning the seven temples having unique dance moves by Thyagaraja. The Chola inscriptions refer Thyagaraja as Vidhividangar and the name "Thyagaraja" is believed to have emerged during the 15–16th century CE.

MUSIC, DANCE AND LITARATURE Historically Thiruvarur has been a centre of eminent people in religion, arts and science. Sundarar, an 8th-century Saivite saint, mentions "I am the slave of all those born in Thiruvarur" in his works in Tevaram. Two of the 63nayanmars of Saivite tradition namely, Kalarsinga Nayanar and Tandiyadigal Nayanar were born in Thiruvarur. The Periyapuranam, a 12th-century Saiva canonical by Sekkizhar, dedicates a chapter to those born in Thiruvarur including these two saints. The town was a traditional centre of music and dance – the inscriptions from Rajaraja Chola associates a large body of dancers associated with the temple. Thiruvarur is home to Trinity of Carnatic music namely Thyagaraja (1767–1847 CE), Muthuswami Dikshitar (1775–1835 CE) and Shyama Shastri (1762–1827 CE). Muthuswami Dikshitar has sung eulogies of the temple deities of the Thyagarajaswami temple. There was large influx of the acumen of South Indian culture to the town during the 17th century CE due to the political unrest in Thanjavur and increased patronage of the Maratha kings to Thiruvarur, resulting in developments in music and dance. A unique musical instrument called Panchamuga Vadyam with each of its five ends ornamented differently is used in the temple. A type of nadaswaram (pipe instrument) called Barinayanam is also a unique instrument found only in Thiruvarur.

EDUCATION AND UTILITY SERVICES As of 2001, Thiruvarur has a lower literacy rate compared to other part of the state. There are three government high schools out of a total of 15 schools in the town. The Central University of Tamil Nadu, established by an act of parliament in 2009, provides collegiate education in the fields of arts and science. There are five other arts and science

33 colleges, one teacher training institute, three polytechnic colleges and two Industrial training institutes (ITI) in the town. Electricity supply to Thiruvarur is regulated and distributed by the Thiruvarur circle of Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB). Water supply is provided by the Thiruvarur Municipality from Odambokki river; the distribution through water tanks located at Madapuram, Thendral Nagar, Kidarakondan, Kattapomman street, Mettupalayam, IP Koil street, Maruthapttinam and Weekly Shandy having a total capacity of 4,260 kl (1,130,000 US gal). About 18 t (40,000 lb) of solid waste is collected from the town everyday; 56% domestic wastes and 40% commercial wastes. Thiruvarur municipality is implementing underground drainage and the current sewerage system for disposal of sullage is through septic tanks and public conveniences. Roadside drains carry untreated sewage out of the town to let out raw into the sea or accumulate in low lying area. Thiruvarur comes under the Thiruvarur Telecom circle of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), India's state-owned telecom and internet services provider. Apart from telecom, BSNL also provides broadband internet service. There are three government hospitals in the town; the largest of them is the District Headquarters Government Hospital. There are 11 private hospitals and numerous medical shops catering to the healthcare need of the town.

WEATHER Thiruvarur has a hot and humid climate. The best times of the year to visit Thiruvarur would be during the monsoon season which is from June to September and during the winter season which is from December to February. Summers are extremely hot in Thiruvarur with the temperature rising to higher than 40 degrees Celsius.

TOURIST PLACES The Saraswati Temple of Koothanoor, Neelameghaperumal Temple at Thirukannapuram, Kothanda Ramar Temple of Mudikondan and the Rajagopalaswamy Temple located at Mannargudi are some famous temples of this place. Moreover, the City Garden and the village of Muthupettai also attract visitors.

MANGROVE FOREST Muthupet in Thiruvarur district is located between Thiruttraipoondi and pattukkottai,around 360 km away from Chennai. Muthupet is home to a natural mangrove forest,Alyathi kadu-one of the largest of its kind in India. This mangrove is located at the southern end of Cauvery delta, covering an area of approximately 12,000 hectares. Muthupet reserve forest covers the lagoon, river creeks and the mudflats. Muthupet lagoon (mullipallam) is a spectacular natural creation, which is 8 km from Muthupet town and can be reached only by boat.The lagoon is shallow with an average depth of 1m.The bottom of the lagoon is formed of silt clay substrturm.

CHAPTER – III AN OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE

Chidambaram (2004)1 in his 2004-05 budget speech states that micro finance initiatives are a cost effective way to take the banking system to the poor. The SHG-bank linkage programme, initiated in 1992, has come a long way. Until March 31, 2004, 1.67 crore families had benefited through 10.79 lakh SHGs financed by banks. He points out that the SHG will be promoted vigorously. He is of the view that matured SHGs may be in a position to graduate from consumption or production credit to start micro enterprise. An indicative target of credit linking 5.85 lakh SHGs

Frances Sinha (2005)2 in his study titled “Access, Use and contribution of Microfinance in India: Findings from National Study” uses main models of microfinance delivery and their relative presence in different regions of India. The study covers Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam and Manipur. The author analyzes the performance of twenty MFIs from across the country representing all the three models, namely, Grameen model, SHG model, and individual banking model in terms of use of their services by clients.

Reinhard Dirk (2006)3 in his article titled “Never Too Late” states

1 Chidambaram, P, Union Finance Minister. 2004-05. Budget Speech, Southern Economist, Vol.43, No.7, p.21-24. 2 Frances Sinha. 2005. Access, Use and Contribution of Microfinance in India: Findings from National Study, Economic and Political Weekly, April, Vol. XL, No.17, pp.1714-1719. 3 Reinhard Dirk. 2006. Never Too Late, Development and Co-operation, No.1, pp.24-25. 36 that micro insurance offers poor people protection from risks, such as destitution caused by illness. Despite widespread doubt among experts, the insurance industry can serve poor people, even if they have irregular income. He narrates various micro insurance models, the partner/agent model, co-operative model, community model and directs sales model, and points out that though there are specific challenges, case studies of various models have shown that they can be overcome.

Aloysius Fernandez and Vidya Ramachandran (2007)4 have stated that poverty represents a negative facet of human development and must be replaced by prosperity. Going by the definition that poor people are those who do not have money and suffer multiple disabilities as a consequence, the State has always recognized the need for, and value of, financial services to the poor. Where the poor are concerned, access is tackled through various schemes for below poverty line households. The assumption is that the poor do not know how to take financial decisions and therefore, credit decisions are best taken by the State. Thus, the schemes cover a limited range of pre-determined investment choices and are accompanied by inflexible terms and conditions.

Monika Tushir et al. (2007)5 state that finance is one of the most crucial inputs for economic activity and growth and development of any economy. Provision of financial assistance to the poor and underprivileged section of the society has always been in the focus of various programmes which have been run by the government since

4 Aloysius, P Fernandez and Vidya Ramachandran. 2007. Self-Help Group Approach in Karnataka, Southern Economist, November, pp.29-34. 75 5 Monika Tushir, Sumita Chadda and Pakaj Ahlawat, 2007. Role of Micro Finance to Uplift the Economic Condition of Women Households in Haryana through SHG, Southern Economist, August, pp.29-32.

37 independence. Despite having a wide network of rural bank branches in India which have implemented specific poverty alleviation programmes that have sought creation of self-employment opportunities through bank credit, a large number of the poor especially women continue to remain outside the purview of formal banking system. A need is felt for alternative policies, systems and procedures, saving and loan products, other complementary services and new delivery mechanisms, which would fulfill the financial requirements of the poor with the main emphasis on socio-economic upliftment.

Anitha et al. (2007)6 state that rural development denotes overall development of rural areas with a view to improving the quality of life of rural poor. To attain this, there is a need for continuous flow of capital to rural sector. It is the acute necessity of the present days, since a large gap still exists and these areas still remain to be covered.

From the above studies, it is clear that the SHG-bank linkage program is highly flexible financial services delivery structures to cater to the needs of the poor, which help the poor households to adjust to the irregular cash flow and to increase their income. The above studies have not looked into the impact of the bank finance on the Self-Help Groups. Hence, for the present study, it is envisaged to target the Self-Help Groups, which have already availed bank loans. Even though the government and the regulatory authorities have put in place an enabling supportive policy on micro finance and the NABARD is keen on bringing out a change in the mindset of the bankers, it is felt by the SHGs and

6 Anitha, H.S, Ashok.D. Revankar. 2007. Micro Credit through Self-Help Groups for Rural Development, Southern Economist, August, pp.17-19.

SHG members that the banks systems are still not flexible. As the micro finance market is going to change its face as buyers market in the days ahead due to increased competition from SHG turned MFIs, the banks have to be proactive in bringing out client-responsive and flexible systems and procedures. The present study would like to explore the flexibility, systems and procedures in delivering the financial assistance to Self-Help Groups. Thus, the present study is quite different from the studies made so far. The outcome of the study will give more perspectives and knowledge to the banks on the subject and will help in redesigning the bank finance to Self-Help Groups.

Chandramani (2005) in his study on self-help groups for empowerment of rural women revealed that women’s development is directly related to national development. The effective management and development of interest, skills, and other potentialities are of paramount importance. It could be well ascertained that women’s development could be achieved by empowerment which there by enables women to be the agents of social change organizational behaviour is the key to women’s empowerment. Women’s organizations and groups provide them a platform to discuss helplessness in their own society. Involvement of women is essential in all stages of economic and social activities.

The study conducted by Sambasiva Rao and Indira Kumari (2005) primarily focused on the- impact of women Self-Help Groups on the social and economic empowerment of rural women in Andhra Pradesh. The primary data in the selected mandals of Krishna District is analyzed. The study highlighted the positive influence of women Self-Help Groups on incremental income of the poor families and their increased awareness and participation levels. The study also delineated the factors and reasons which are impinging on the healthy growth of the movement. 39

Chitra Ramachandran (2005)51 conducted a study on 202 SHG leaders of Madurai district in Tamilnadu with a view to understanding the impact of micro-enterprises on the quality of life of the women which was measured in terms of their living standards. She observed that most of the women in micro-enterprises wanted to reduce poverty and to share their family responsibilities. The survey demonstrated that quality of life of the rural women had substantially increased the objective of the establishment of the micro-enterprises successfully.

Keshav Chandra Jha (2006)7 analyzed ORMAS, an autonomous body under Panchayat Raj Department. Government of Orissa, Bhubaneswar, launched one special SGHY project in Boudh district for improving the livelihood and income generation pattern of rural producers through formation of self-help groups (SHGs). The project in Boudh district is being implemented and monitored by DRDA. A total of 200 SHGs are being promoted in different clusters and are tagged to four key activities. One such key activity is dal processing in which 20 SHGs belonging to various villages in Ramgesh, Tileswar and Dhalpur GPs under Harbhanga block are engaged. Marketing arrangement has also been done by DSMS by having tie up with DSWO office for supply to Harabhanga block under MDM besides DSMS facilitates, sale of their product in state and national level exhibition (SARAS), organized by ORMAS and MORD. A part from this activity groups are also involved in cultivation of water melon which they fetch very good income last year. The total income of groups was Rs. 32400/. This dal is now being sold in the market with a brand name. The Ramgarh experiment is now considered to be one of the success stories in the district.

7 Keshav Chandra Jha (2006), "Development of ORAMAS under Panchayatraj Department", Economic and Political Weekly, October 40

C.S. Reddy (2005) in his work, "self help groups : A key stone of microfinance in India, analyse that microfinance has evolved over the past quarter century across India into various operating forms and to varying degree of soccer. One such form of micro finance has been the development of the self help groups movement based on the concept of "Self Help", small groups of women have formed into groups and operate a saving first business model whereby the members savings are used to fund loans. The results from these self help groups (SHGs) are promising and have become a focus of inters examination as it is proving to be an effective method of poverty reduction.

Suguna (2006)8 conducted a study on "Empowerment of Rural Women through Self-Help Groups-An in-depth study of Self-Help Groups in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh". A total sample of 300 beneficiaries had been selected for the study. The objectives of the study are to analyze the role of Self-Help Groups in the social, Economic and political empowerment of women, to assess the extent of awareness regarding the governmental programme, nature of participation of women in SHGs, and to examine and evaluate the specific problems of the beneficiaries with regard to saving, revolving fund productivity, marketing.

Gangaiah, et. al. (2006)9 in their study opined that the emerging changes in the values and attitudes of the members of the Self-help groups are a clear manifestation of socio-economic empowerment intervention yielding relatively quicker results. The socio-economic programmes reinforce each other and promote all-round development of the children, the women, the households and the communities.

8 Suguna B., (2006), "Empowerment of Rural Women through Self-Help Groups", Discovery Publishing House, New Delhi, pp.88-97 9 Gangaiah, C., Nagaraju, B., and Vasudevulu, C. (2006), “Impact of Self-help Groups on Income and Employment”, Kurukshetra, Vol.54, No.5, March, pp.18-23 41

Joseph Labinviana and Eawaran Kanagaraju (2006)10 in their study stated that the performance of SHGs in tribal development i.e., improvement in social and economic conditions of tribal people depend largely on the member’s participation mediated by the factors of duration of membership groups play a vital role in tribal development of the rural areas of Mizoram. They have reported benefits decreased debt. They have perceived mostly high level of cohesion in their SHGs. The decline of perceived impact of SHGs with increased duration of functioning needs to be reversed through some mechanism to increase participation of members.

Suneetha (2007)11 has explained that the empowerment of women became necessary as they are almost fifty percent of the population and are being discriminated at all fronts. Women play a vital role in the social and economic transformation of a country. She found all that the implementation of DWCRA programme has empowered the women beneficiaries with significant growth in their income and employment in the back ward districts.

Abdul Raheem and Yasmeen Sultana (2007)12 in their study stated that the Self-Help Group (SHG) models, women are responsible citizens of the country achieving social and economic status. In all stages of economic and social activities, involvement of women has given added significance to them. Women led SHGs in many parts of country have achieved success in bringing the women to the mainstream of decision making. The Self-Help Group (SHG) in our country has become a source

10 Joseph Labinviana and Eawaran Kanagaraju (2006), “S.H.G.s and Tribal Development in Mizoram”, Kurukshetra, January, Vol. 54, No. 3, pp.35-48 11 Suneetha R. (2007), “Is DWCRA Programme Empowering the Rural Women”, Kurukshetra, March, pp.17-19 12 Abdul Raheem A., and Yasmeen Sultana, H. (2007), “Empowerment of Women through Self-Help Groups”, Kissan World, March, 2007, Vol. 34, No.3, pp. 48-52 42 of inspiration for women’s welfare. Now a days formation of SHG is a viable alternative to achieve the objectives of rural development and to get community participation in all rural development programmes. SHG is also available organized set up to disburse micro credit to the rural women and encouraging them to enter into entrepreneurial activities.

Raghav Gaiha and Mani Arul Nandhi (2007)13 in their study found that most of the members are using loans sanctioned through SHGs for health and education of children and for production-related expenses especially by the disadvantaged. Further, domestic violence was reduced.

The Hindu has surveyed (2007)14 the success stories of many SHGs operating in the districts of Andhra Pradesh. A study conducted in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh indicated that 26, 086 self-help groups were organized in the district with the total membership of 2,80,860 lakh women. Out of them, 10,122 groups were absorbed in to DWCRA; they could save up to Rs.9 crore. Both group leader and members were provided with training in education, health, and family- welfare. They were also imparted training to produce items, which are in demand in the district.

Ariz Ahemed (2007)15 has undertaken a study of self-help groups in Kokrajhar district of Assam with a view to study the women empowerment. He studied Self- Help Groups to identify strengths of the scheme. Further, given the poor lifting of APLLPDS rice by the GPSS

13 Raghav Gaiha, Mani Arul Nandhi, (2007), “Microfinance, Self-Help Groups and Empowerment in Maharashtra”, Australia South Asia Research Centre, Australian National University, Canberra Working Paper 2007/15, October 14 Hindu Paper (2007) Daily-Feb-22nd p.12. 15 Ariz Ahemed (2007), "Women Empowerment Through Self-Help Groups in Kokrajhar District of Assam". Sonali Publications, New Delhi, 2007, p.11 43 co-operative societies, the sub divisional administration offered this uplifted APL rice to these thrift groups to help their villages. This idea simply clicked. Many mahila samities started lifting this APL rice at government rates. They are also commanding respect among the poor and the widows of the village by selling APL rice at the rate of Rs. 8 kg, against market price rs. 10. The study revealed that the low price of their products, compared with market price, helped them market it easily. Thus involvement of women groups is not only empowering them but also enabling to shape themselves as social activists by trying to check the malpractices and injustices in the implementation of different schemes in the system.

Shibalal Mehar (2007)16 attempted a study of the impact of microfinance on SHGs. This study analyzed Micro-Finance through Self-Help Groups (SHG) has the potential to fight against poverty and can be an important weapon for poverty alleviation. The findings in Orrissa show that SHG based micro-finance has better outreach and positive impact on poverty. However, the process of empowerment is found to be poor. The success of this programme depends on both better outreach and the ability to empower the poor, particularly women Self-Help Groups.

Ganesamurthy (2007)17 in his study stated that majority of the women continues to be confined to micro, small-scale enterprises in spite of efforts made toward economic empowerment of women.

16 Shibalal Mehar (2007), "Micro Finance Through Self-Help Groups to Fight Against Poverty" Discovery Publishing House, New Delhi, 2007, pp. 18-22 17 Ganesamurthy V.S. (2007), "Women Empowerment in India", Discovery Publishing House, New Delhi, pp.44-47 44

Baby Sarojini (2009)18 attempted a study on "Women Development-role of Self-Help Groups: An analytical study on women SHG members in East Godavari District of Andhra Pradesh". The objectives of the study are, the process of women participation in SHGs, to understand the factors responsible for facilitating sustainable interest of women to engage themselves with the SHGs, the impact of SHGs movement on socio-Economic aspects pertaining to women, to derive important policy issues pertaining to SHGs movement and to facilitate sustainable development of women.

Klaus Deininger and Yanyan Liu (2009)19 in their study found that the poorest seem to be able to benefit not only socially but also economically. They suggests that to introduce a programme that not only fosters group formation but also supports more mature groups through federation and credit access in order to have significant economic benefits in the long term.

Tanomyee Banerjee (2009)20 in his study found that women income have been increased after joining SHGs. This resulted in increase in food as well as non-food expenditure and also resulted in increased monthly savings.

18 Baby Sarojani, "Women Empowerment Through Self-Help Groups", Associated Publishers, 2009, pp.133-137 19 Klaus Deininger and Yanyan Liu (2009), ‘Longer Term Economic Impacts of Self-help Groups in India’, Policy Research Working Paper, 4886, Washington, DC: World Bank, March 20 Tanomyee Banerjee (2009), “Economic Impact of Self-help Groups – A Case Study”, Journal of Rural Development, NIRD, Vol.28, No.4, October-December, pp.451-467 45

Jothi (2010)21 opined that SHG plays a pivotal role in improving the both social and economic lives of the members, bring them more respect both domestically and socially. The sample respondents after joining SHGs have become very active by becoming full employed in varied activities and thereby earning more. He concluded that the self- help groups contribute substantially in pushing the conditions of the female population up and through that chip in poverty eradication as well.

Thus, the above studies revealed that though there are failures in some areas, self-help groups are considered more worth for the empowerment of the women.

Economic Ethic finds that the successful functioning of microfinance institutions in several developing countries has fostered the rise of a new economic ethic. MFIs have helped in the successful inculcation of the saving habit, encouraged loan repayment as per pre-set schedule, ensured the separation of the public and private spheres and overseen the commercialization of economic life. Under this economic ethic, more than hierarchy or other traditional demarcations of status, it is money, the possession of it and its use in commercial commodity production that forms the measure of most things-in determining transactions, relationships and status. Micro-finance Institutions (MFIs) are now Ubiquitous in developing countries. They have promoted women’s entry into income earning occupations and it has an impact on women’s empowerment. The economic ethic promoted by the MFIs in the following areas, savings, repayment of loans, the separation of public

21 Jothi, V.N., (2010), ‘Socio-economic Impact: Micro financing of Self-Help Groups’, SCMS Journal of Indian Management, January-March, pp.91-103. 46 from private spheres, commercialization of economic life, money as the measure and ideology of winners and losers. The ethic of savings promotes capital accumulation22. Some of this capital accumulates with these poor women and their households themselves. But some of it also accumulates also with the SHGs. This happens in Bangladesh, for instance, where MFIs like Grameen Bank and BRAC have emerged as large corporations. In the case of SHGs, in India, often the MFIs have micro funds that their members can borrow and this excess then ends up, in one way or the other, in the commercial banking system. All in all, MFIs by extending the ethic of savings right down to the poorest sections of society have promoted capital accumulation both by poor women and their households and within the economy as a whole.

Ganesan (2005)23 in his article states that the SHG is based on the belief that individual can be developed, the outlook can be changed and the ideas can be converted into action through an organized and systematic effort but on organized sectors. A streamlined training programme for members of SHGs at Panchayat-level has been conducted with financial help provided by District Rural Development Agency (DRDA). The group and community based training programme help in horizontal sharing of information and experience, in this training, intense monitoring of the performance of the SHGs at the Panchayat and village levels. The growth of mahalir thittam has been phenomenal due to the high level of political blessings and bureaucratic support it has received in the last two years. However, to sustain the movement and speed up its success the mahalir thittam should engage marketing consultants and professionals experienced in rural marketing. It is found that the

22 DN, Micro-Finance, “Transforming the economic ethic.” Economic Political Weekly, vol.40, no.4 (2005), p.275. 23 G. Ganesan, “Rural transformation through SHG.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.1 (2005), p.13. 47 formation of SHGs and their activities has improved the standard of living of the poor people and they can live examples for other people too.

Amal Mandal (2005)24 Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) is the latest poverty alleviation programme. The SGSY focusses on group approach by organizing the poor into SHG through social mobilization. This is a single cell self-employment programme for rural poor aimed at establishment of large number of micro-enterprises. The policy expectation is to ensure that the group members or swarozgaris (self- employed) come out of poverty clutches through incremental income of around Rs.2,000 (net of loan repayment) within 2-3 years of group formation. The SHG is the surer way in reaching the poor and assisting them in terms of credit, technology, market, etc. Building capacity to manage own resources, developing saving habit and community orientation, the members will have economic emancipation, self-identity and assertiveness. The apparent improvement in SGSY is provision for identification of key activity, activity cluster and training. The SGSY revolves exclusively on rural people living between poverty line. The success of a group largely depends on the homogeneity and units of purpose among the group members. For the really poor, subsistence struggle seems external for which they cannot skip productive labour for instant un remunerative venture. The SHG is inherently a weak group as it is voluntary and autonomous organization. Apart from internal group solidarity and collective strength the group cannot withstand onslaught of external and internal adversity. When a group consists of genuine poor or disadvantaged section, such autonomous nature poses more problems. It is advised that monitoring and intermediary role should be played continuously, at least until the group takes up economic activity.

24 Amal Mandal. “Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana and SHG: An Assessment.” Kurukshetra, vol.53, no.3 (2005), pp.4-9 48

Radhakrishna Rao (2005)25 in his study points out that the state of Uttranchal lying in the lap of the magnificent Himalayas, has remained an underdeveloped region for long. It is against this backdrop that the Detradhun based Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK), a Non-government organization that has been active in serving the rural and disadvantaged sections of the society in Uttranchal, decided to implement the UNDP (United Nation Development Programme) supported “community development” in the one hundred remote and least developed villages in the Garhwal hills of Uttaranchal. Rightly and appropriately, RLEK christens this programme a Prakriya meaning a process of change for the rural community. The Federation of SHG is now keenly looking forward to contribute to the Himalayan Herbal Honey. Indeed as part of prakriya income generation is promoted through training programmes in capacity building and the provision of micro-capital to SHGs for investing in small scale enterprise. Visits for SHG members to other parts of the country have been conducted for exposure, sharing of experience, and learning from examples of other successful community development initiatives. In fact intense urge for female education has led RLEK to facilitate the construction of half a dozen schools in the remote villages of the region. These schools are managed by SHGs. Another commendable social issue to be taken up by the SHGs to facilitate all-round development of the region is the problem of alcoholism rampant in the area. The villagers have realized that the meaning of development is not merely construction of stone foot paths but their overall empowerment which enables them to fight for their cause and entitlement.

25 Radhakrishna Rao. “Women’s groups herald a wind of change in rural Uttranchal.” Kurukhetra, vol.53, no.3 (2005), pp.35-37 49

Anbalagan and Arulappan (2005)26 in their study states that many a time, the essential public services are either not available at all to the majority of the population or they are only available in places and at times, when their provision is convenient for the provider regardless of the needs of the consuming public. For instance, electricity supply is only available to most rural communities for a few hours in a day and at widely varying voltages. Primary schools are without teachers, rural health clinics are unmanned without medicines. It is not uncommon that many of the above public systems fail to deliver totally or partially the public goods to the satisfaction of the public through existing official and organized channels. There is urgent need to involve private entrepreneurs like SHGs in this mission to provide public services to match the expectation and satisfaction levels of the public. The mechanism of micro-privatization of public services is the only solution not only to relieve the local authority from the burden of management of public services but also to earn revenue to the local governments at least cost. The micro-enterprises can retain a portion of the collections to the local authorities, which entrust them the responsibility. There would also be qualitative change in the public perception about the image of the local governance. The SHGs must be provided training, logistics and other financial support to meet the expectations of the local government and local public to deliver quality, efficient and effective public service. Introduction of these measures without any favour or fear would create silent revolution in the local Panchayat or municipal, localities paving way for improving the conditions and quality of the life of people and in turn equip them to face the challenges of globalization in rural India. Delegation of public services with people’s empowerment has become an urgent necessity.

26 M. Anbalagan and A. Arulappan. “Micro privatization – A proactive strategy to deliver quality service.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.6 (2005), p.27 50

Guha and Gupta (2005)27 says that Micro-Credit Institutions have played an important part in income generation activities in developing countries. In India, Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCA), a special type of micro-credit organization, largely meets the credit needs of the poor. These organizations also improve the loan repayment habits of the poor borrower. This principle mostly followed for allotment of fund is random selection by ROSCA. In India, women borrowers are given priority in ROSCA 90 per cent of group members are women. The main reason for targeting women over men in rural areas is based on the premise that women make a higher contribution to family welfare. Therefore, their earnings bring more qualitative benefits to family welfare than the earnings of men. In addition, lending to women is an effective tool for the attainment of socio-economic empowerment of women. From a survey conducted by Jeevika Development Society (JDS) an SHG of West Bengal. It is seen that the percentage of members, who are only involved in house work, is very high, low level of literacy and lack of marketable. Skill with poor employment opportunities also compels many women to stay at home. However, it is important to note that about 17 percent of the sample of 1074 members are engaged in income generation activities. From the same survey, it is said that the most of the Hindu members are general caste (61.82%). It appears that the SHG motivates the larger section of the scheduled caste population to join the ROSCA. The poor population is able to largely satisfy their credit needs by joining ROSCA. In this case decreasing social sanction can be interpreted as increasing sustainability of ROSCA. It is easy to show that at very high levels of social sanction in ROSCA, default will not occur. The interesting point made here is that every consecutive

27 Guha and Gupta. “Micro-credit for income generation: The role of Rosca.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol.40, no.14 (2005), pp.1470-1472 51 borrower may repay her loan in time even when sanction declines. This has an effect on the behaviour of the next borrower via the dissolution fund. Thus, the growing amount in the dissolution fund can create an incentive for repayment of the loan, which contributes to increasing sustainability of the ROSCA.

Sathish (2005)28 has found that the SHG system reflects the independence and diversity (of Indian people). It allows people to save and borrow according to their own timetable not as the bank requires. The reduction in transaction cost to the borrowers is also substantial. The study observes that the linkage between bank and SHGs worked out to the advantage of both the players. In contemporary micro-finance literature the return of the state is perceived as the greatest recent threat. Today, in several countries, the train of micro-finance runs smoothly and briskly conquering new territory and expanding frontiers. Public policies ought not to consider microfinance as a substitute for the series of other public programmes that has a significant impact on the growth processes and reduction of poverty and unemployment.

Darling Selvi (2005)29in her study on the development of SHG in Kanyakumari District, shows a tremendous growth over the years in all respects as to number of groups, number of members, savings mobilized and in the disbursement of loan. Hence the overall development is good. A survey, which has been conducted among hundred SHG members in the district, reveals the fact that the reasons behind the selection for SHG training are to get good training employment, convenience, education,

28 P. Sathish. “Mainstreaming of India micro finance.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol.40, no.17 (2005), p.1731 29 V. Darling Selvi. “Impact of self-help group training.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.3 (2005), p.31 52 self interest, poverty, to get additional income and the proper utilization of time. The true effectiveness of any activity can be measured with the help of its impact on the lives of the people. Generally, people prefer monetary benefits, known as economic impact. It means the improvement of income, expenditure, savings, personal investment and business investment of SHG members after being trained. The survey that has been conducted among hundred SHG members of Kanyakumari district regarding the impact of SHG training reveals the fact that the members have considerable improvement in their lives after being members of SHGs. Their lives are now enriched both economically and socially. Their satisfaction is significant through various aspects.

Mubarak Ali (2005)30 in his article Women Development Project in Tamil Nadu states that it functions a network of women’s SHGs established and monitored with the assistance of SHGs. Further the growth of SHG movement had been planned with a view to promoting sustainability combined with deepening of coverage of habitations and ward / slums in urban areas. The project concentrates on Socio-Economic empowerment of minority community, scheduled caste and scheduled tribe women and protects them against exploitation by making them to join the SHGs. For economic development of women, district specific employment generation plan and micro-enterprise development plan suitable to SHG women will be prepared which will ensure additional employment opportunities to 10,000 SHG women in each district. The role of Panchayat level federation and block level federation will be strengthened by providing corpus fund and involving them in imparting capacity building training and EDP training to the SHGs members and

30 E. Mubarak Ali. ‘Women Development Project in Tamil Nadu.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.6 (2005), pp.11-13 53 monitoring the SHGs. The government involves effectively in implementing a state policy for women that would guide the development policies of all departments and sectors, which helps to eliminate gender gaps and enable women to gain equitable access to resources, decision-making and improved quality of life.

Solmon Raj (2005)31 has reviewed the self-help group is an effective tool for delivering the credit to the rural poor for their economic empowerment and social development. The result of the recent studies is given to SHGs, formed by women. The employment generation programme in rural areas through SHGs directly reflects the upliftment of rural people below poverty line. The success of this scheme depends on the subsidy and SHG’s involvement in implementing the programmes by the government through the banks. The members of the SHGs benefited through revolving fund scheme for 2002-03 are 203, and received Rs.1.95 lakhs loan amount as against Rs.1.30 lakhs as subsidy. The beneficiaries of self-employment through this scheme are now confident enough to sustain in their efforts to find jobs by themselves. They get credit at a low rate of interest. They can easy access to bank through SHGs. It is concluded that the formation of more and more self- help groups is able to generate sufficient employment opportunities in the wake of severe unemployment position in India.

Padmavathy (2005)32 in her survey says that most of the respondents have joined SHG to get a loan for self-employment. These loans are used for the purchase of sewing machine, cattle, raw materials

31 D. Solmon Raj. Employment Generation Programme through SHG’s in Thoothukudi Panchayat Union, In Rural Labour Market, [M. Soundara Pandian (ed.)], New Delhi: Serials Publication (2005), pp.302-310 32 S. Padmavathy. Employment Generation Through SHG’s in Rural Area – In Rural Labour Market, [M. Soundara pandian (ed.)], New Delhi: Serials Publications (2005) pp.291-301 54 etc. Among the samples 62.5 per cent have undergone entrepreneurship development training. These training programmes have changed the occupation of some of the respondents. Before joining SHG 43.5 per cent of respondents were not employed. But after joining SHG all of them do some work which yield income. Organization of members into SHG has increased employment of members. All members engage themselves in some work or the other and get additional income to the family. Hence these successful members can be trained to motivate members of other groups also. Their suggestions may be considered for implementation as it will help in the generation of employment opportunities in rural areas like Thanjavur.

Kamaraju (2005)33 has conducted a study in Valangaiman at Thanjavur district. There are 81 members in five self-help groups functioning in Maruvathur village. These groups utilize the loan for purchasing milch animals, goats and for meeting personal urgent needs. One group by name ‘Mahizhampu’ purchased a power tiller for agriculture purpose on lien basis. There are 57 members in the self-help group functioning in Virupachipuram village. The main objective of the groups is to lend money for purchasing milch animals and goats. In the Chandrasekarapuram village, there are six self-help groups which carry out the function of mutual lending for goats and milch animals rearing. The SHGs should function as a non-political and non-controversial one. Political and religious neutrality paves the way for its healthy growth. The SHG helps the people to improve their economic conditions. There is a sign of relief and smile in the faces of the members of the self-help groups and it shall be extended to all people in the villages. SHG concept

33 S. Kamaraju. “Self-Help Groups-Emerging Rural Enterprise.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.5 (2005), p.25. 55 gains momentum now-a-days because of its many fold effect in the economic empowerment of poor women.

Kannabiran (2005)34 studies the feminisation of poverty; a serious concern so far, which now gives way to the feminisation of micro-credit. Women are preferred clients because they can be persuaded to operate on gendered notions of shame, decency and discipline. As the SHG functions as a policy and delivery agent, poverty, (particularly rural poverty) grows at an alarming pace and the quick fix solution which seems to provide women with practicing savings and credit. Provided credit and savings will enable them to lift their household out of poverty. Panumathy (2005)35 in her study has stated that Micro-financing has turned out to be an effective strategy for formal financing agencies group lending minimizes the transaction cost and at the same time the members of a group can avail small loans through that group. The chances of misutilisation are minimum and there are assumed repayment because of monitoring by the group has enabled the rural poor to develop the habit of savings. Thus, the whole programme has been made customer friendly. Further, it has its own impact on poverty alleviation and women empowerment SHGs play a major role in transforming rural economy. Micro-finance helps the rural poor to improve their standard of life and fulfill their credit needs. SHGs are new innovation in the field of rural economic development to finance the rural people and also to satisfy their credit needs. This in turn will help to transform the rural economy by way of improving the economic status of each and every individual member of the SHG in the rural areas apart from providing scope for women empowerment. Thus, SHGs play a major role in women

34 V. Kannabiran, “Marketing self-help managing poverty.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol.40, no.34 (2005), p.3717 35 S. Panumathy. “SHG and Bank Linkages.” Kisan World, vol.32, no.5 (2005), p.20. 56 empowerment; micro-finance through bank linkages in collaboration with SHGs and contribute to the rural economy.

Sahu and Tripathy (2005)36 in their study status views that 70 per cent of world’s poor are women. Access to poor to banking services is important not only for poverty alleviation but also for optimising their contribution to the growth of regional as well as the national economy. Self-help groups (SHGs) have emerged as the most vital instrument in the process of participatory development and women empowerment. The rural women are the marginalized groups in the society because of socio- economic constraints. They remain backward and lower position of the socio-hierarchical ladder. They can lift themselves from the morass of poverty and stagnation, through micro-finance and formation of self-help groups.

Sinha (2005)37 in his study has observed that micro-finance is makes a significant contribution to both the savings and borrowing of the poor in the country. According to him the main use of micro-credit is for direct investment. There is of course some fungibles, depending on household credit requirements at the time of loan disbursement. Some studies reveal that micro-finance programmes have had positive as well as negative impacts on women. Some researchers have questioned how far micro-finance benefits women (Goetz and Sen Gupta, 1996). Some argue that micro-finance programmes divert the attention of women from other more effective strategies for empowerment (Ebdon, 1995), and the attention and the resources of donors from alternative, and possibly more

36 Sahu and Tripathy. Self-Help Groups and Women Empowerment, New Delhi: Anmol Publications Pvt. Ltd. (2005) 37 Sinha, “Access, use and contribution of micro-finance in India: Findings from a National Study.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol.20, no.17 (2005), p.1741. 57

effective means of alleviating poverty (Rogaly, 1996). In some cases women increased autonomy has been temporary. It only benefits women who are already better off. But in most cases the poorest women are least able to benefit because of their low initial resources base lack of skill.

Stephen and Seilan (2005)38 in their study observes that in Kanyakumari District, the SHGs play a vital role in SHG formation. Their activities include, identification of village, survey of village, mobilization of people by explaining the SHG concept, group formation, guiding SHG members in holding meeting, group nurturing, maintaining book of accounts and providing assistance to choose income generating activities, procuring raw materials and marketing of the product. It is realized that SHGs can play a decisive role as an effective delivery mechanism in rural development they have innate advantage to involve people and ensure their participation in the development process. Networking with governmental agencies and fellow SHGs is an added advantage to them. The SHGs are taking keen interest in providing micro-finance through SHGs and by empowering poor women. The success of SHGs in helping rural poor to organize SHGs for credit delivery, in a way, highlights the importance of SHG-SHG linkage for the betterment of the later.

M. Soundarapandian (2006)39 in his paper, analyzed growth of SHGs and the role of microfinance in developing the rural entrepreneurship and he further suggested that though there is a positive growth rate of SHGs in states but in terms of SHGs, there is a wide

38 J.K. Stephen and A. Seilan. Role of NGO’s in micro-financing through self-help groups – A study in Kanyakumari district, Indian Journal of Marketing, vol.25, no.8 (2005), pp.10-11. 39 M. Sundarapandian, "Micro-Finance for Rural Enterprises", Issues and Streategies", Kurukshetra, September 2006, pp. 14-16 58 variation among states. Linkages of banks with SHGs is found impossible for this variations.

Kalavat Kamble and Gangadhar B. Sonar (2006)40 in his work, "The Role of SHGs in Women Empowerment study on selected SHGs promoted by voluntary organization in Gulbarga District of Karnataka" studies that the role of socio-economic empowerment of women. The socio-economic conditions of the SHG women are increasing to a significant level irrespective of different backgrounds. Earlier they used to be home and not exposed to the society and were part of the system. Now they can come out and approach the government machinery, conduct meeting, to signature & more importantly have a good amount of money in their hand. SHGs are mostly focused from financial aspects rather social one this trend is more in the SHGs promoted under government programme. The fact that self-help groups, are increasingly attracting younger generation, this generation not only needs social and economic empowerment but also assertive capacity, freedom from atrocities and a new self image to claim themselves as fully human.

Renu Verma (2008)41 in his article conclude that microfinance is expected to play a significant role in poverty alleviation and rural development. Microfinance have, in the recent past become one of the more premising ways to use score development funds to achieve the objectives of poverty alleviation further he stated that certain microfinance programs have gained prominence in the development field

40 Kamble, H. Kalavati and Sonar, Gangadhar B., "The Role of SHGs in Women Empowerment : A Study on selected SHG programmes by voluntary organization in Gulbarga District of Karnataka", Journal of Global Economy, Vol. 12, No. 3, October, 2006, pp 216-221 41 Verma, Renu, "Microfinance and Empowerment of Rural Women", Kurukshetra, September 2008, pp 3-5 59 and beyond. The ultimate aim is to attain social and economic empowerment. These microfinance institutions may very well have had a major impact on improving the standard of living of millions of poor people as well as on promoting economic development. Thus microfinance has become one of the most effective interventions for economic empowerment of the poor.

M.A. Lokhande (2008)42 in his work "Socio-economic impact of microfinancing through self help groups in Maharashtra Region observed that microfinance for micro enterprises can be one of the most effective poverty reducing instrument. The need of the hour is to promote more and more microfinance institutions and strengthen them so that provide more service to the needy poor people. These tiny business activities can be started mostly based on local resources. In order to give impetus to micro entrepreneurial activities by poor people in rural as well urban areas, microfinance institutions should be promoted to provide adequate, regular microcredit to the needy entrepreneurs. Microfinance programmes is the most promising strategic weapon for attacking poverty by way of providing development funds to so for neglected target groups. If poor people are given opportunities to undertake entrepreneurial activities supported by proper access to credit. It will certainly enable to them to out of poverty trap. Development of microfinance strengthens not only rural sector but also the financial system of the country as a whole.

42 Lokhande, M.A., "Socio-Economic impact of microfinancing through self help groups in Marathwada Region", The Indian Journal of Commerce, Vol. 61, No. 4, October-December 2008, pp 151-164 60

I.P. Tripath and R.P. Gupta (2008)43 in his work, "Microfinance - The Emerging Horizons." The most Important form of microfinance is credit targeted to poor people who are also talented entrepreneurs. If these people gain access to credit, they will expand their business, stimulate. Local economic growth and hire their less entrepreneurial labours, resulting in fast economic development. While this approach has had significant results in the cities of the developing world. It has failed to reach the majority of poor people, who are rural subsistence farmers, with little if any, non-farm income. As urban-rural income inequalities continue to rise in the developing world, this result is increasingly viewed with dissatisfaction. A new microfinance paradigm is taking shape, with goal of developing full service for profit banks for all poor people. These banks will be able to support their client's efforts to control family risk as well as capitalize on business opportunities. They will offer savings, insurance, remittance services and personal & business loans, to help clients grow their assets while increasing their incomes.

J.B. More (2008)44 in his article - SHG - The way of Eradication of poverty interpret that India is a country of villages. Hence the beginning of the development of India should be started from the rural indict. Though India is developing towards mighty power. 25 percent of people of the country are below poverty line. In the same way, the women are efficient in rural area and they are busy on household only. Some of the women are doing full work, looking after the cattles and cleaning etc. The rural women have the limitations due to the different reasons such as less education, lack of technical and skill based knowledge and man

43 Tripath, I.P. and Gupta, R.D., "Microfinance - Emerging Horizon's", Indian Journal of Commerce, Vol. 61, No. 4, October-December 2008 44 More, J.B., "SHG - The way of Eradication of poverty, Indian Journal of Commerce, Vo. 61, No. 4, October 2008 61 dominated culture that's why the could not participated in the development of the rural area. Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) was started on 15th April 1999 by the Govt. of India, in which self help groups were established to participate the development of rural. This programmes, persons of the same thoughts i.e. minimum 10 and maximum 20 come together and form the self help groups, enthusiastically to work for self employment and eradicate their poverty, self help group movement was started in Maharashtra to increase income of families which are below the poverty line, to solve the finance problem of the women in rural area to have develop rural area by taking the functional support of women.

K.P. Bairagi and H.L. Ghorpade (2008)45 in his paper "Self help group - A Microfinance : Emerging horizon", stated that the microfinance is the important source poor to their socio-economic development. SHG is one of the important agencies providing microfinance to the poorest in the society. The objectives of SHG are not only to provide finance to poor but also to promotes the habit of saving to build mutual confidence among members. To fulfill financial needs of the poor, to improve communication among the people living at same places or village and organize working closes to solve their problem. Formation of SHG will encourage the rural and urban poor to uplift their socio-economical development. There should be a positive role of SHG and strict regulation about administration of SHG. Today more than 30 lakhs SHG are working in India. The membership of SHG is about 450 lakhs men and women. The SHG have provided Rs. 1500 crores as a internal loans to their members NABARD has refinanced to Bank Rs.

45 Bairagi, K.P. and Ghorpade, N.L., "Selp Help Groups - Microfinance : Emerging Horizons, Indian Journal of commerce, Vol. 61, No. 4, October-December 2008 62

4000 crores against SHG loan up to 2005. Thus systemic management of SHG will help to help to remove poverty of rural as regulation and finance to SHG.

Gurmeet Singh (2009)46 in his paper, "Microfinance - A Innovation Rural credit system" studied that. In march 2001, 71% of the linked SHG, were from southern region consisting of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerla & Tamil Nadu. The share of southern region has come down progressively over the years but is still at 44%. Many states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar with high incidence of poverty shown poor performance under programme. So it is finally clear that the role of micro finance institutions is very importance in Rural development & poverty eradication. It is in this context that one needs to appreciate the role played by microfinance institutions, Government, SHGs and social organizations.

Divy, Ninad Koul and Giresh Moha (2009) in his paper, "Women's self help groups and microfinance", studied that the formed SHG helped the rural womenfolk in improving their socio-economic status as well as status of their awareness and self dependency. It was more crucial for women of tribal communities for sustenance of their family. The biggest concern was that the groups are more of credit management (CMG) nature and the meetings were mostly limited to collection of monthly saving and discussion of loans. It is essentials to guide the other family members of the women members about importance of SHG and microfinance so that they support the group. Excess dependency on office bearers or SHG worker needs to be curbed

46 Singh Gurumeet, "Microfinance : A Innovation of Rural Credit", Kurukshetra, February 2209, pp 3-6 63 and every member should be made about their responsibilities and duties within the group. Absence in meetings and delay in submission of monthly savings and repayment of loan can be best tacked by building suitable peer and group pressure if bank loan is provided at right time. Other activities done at right time and ensuring that the women members become more self dependent leads to sustainability of the groups and can ensure the alleviation of rural poverty in the longer run.

M.A. Lokhande (2009)47 in his paper, "Microfinance Initiatives in India", microfinance programme has a significant role to play in Indian economy for boosting micro entrepreneurial activities for creating productions assets coupled with employment generation. So, in order to cover all the poor households, particularly BPL households there is need for providing full support the government financial institutions and SHGs SHGs programme. So for the SHGs bank linkage programme has been much successful achieving quantitative targets. The need of the hour is to match the programme more qualitative, that is enriching to lives of poorest of the poor in the context of globalized socio-economic environment. Political interference the functioning of self help group should be avoided. Around 90% of the aggregate groups are women self help groups. These groups have to face problems such as indifferent attitude of bank officers, exploitation, promoting SHGs, lack of marketing facilities product/services. These bottleneck should be root out on priority basis. Women groups should be give responsibility of running Anganwadi, fair price shop so that they become a permanent entities. The banks and the respective SHG should nourish and develop the SHGs by providing financial assistance, organizing skill based training programmes in rural as well as semi urban area.

47 Lokhande, M.A., "Microfinance - Initiative in India", Kurukshetra, February 2009, 16-18. 64

Rao, Jitendra Ahir (2009)48 in his article - "Rural women empowerment through microfinance", concluded that small loans can make good business sense among the women. It has been noticed that women in particular stand to gain a lot from microfinance because it gives them on independent means of generating wealth and becoming self reliant in a society that does not offer them much scope for entrepreneurship.

Rajesh Kumar Shastri (2009)49 in his paper microfinance and poverty reduction in India (A comparative study with Asian countries) studied that creating self employment opportunities is one way of attacking poverty and solving the problems of unemployment. There are over 24 crore people bellow the poverty line in our country. The scheme of microfinance has been found as an effective instrument for lifting the poor above the level of poverty by providing them increased self- employment opportunities and making them credit worthy. A basic effort of last decade, the microfinance objectives in India has reached at the top point similar to Bangladesh. With some effort substantial progress can be made in taking MFIs to the next orbit of significance and sustainability. There is need of designing financial sustainable models and increase outreach and scale up operations for poor in India. People belong to villages are still unaware about banking policies and credit system. So SHGs should communicate to them and share their view with villagers. Banks should convert and build up professional system into social banking system for poor. Government of India and state governments should also provide support for capacity building initiatives and ensure transparency and enhance credibility through disclosures.

48 Rao Jitendra Ahir, "Rural Women Empowerment through Microfinance", Kurukshetra, February 2009, pp 24-25 49 Shastri Rajesh Kumar, "Microfinance and Poverty Reduction in India - A comparative study with Asian countries", African Journal of Business Management, Vol. 3 (4), April 2009, pp 136-140 65

C, Paramasivan (2009)50 in his work - Performance of SHGs in Namakkal District, Tamil Nadu…. that financial inclusion and social exclusive schemes can be implemented and maintained only with the help of active performing SHGs. These emerging sectors are directly related with the society particularly the women. Above all the government may pass a separate act to regulate and restructure the SHG in future. This study concludes that the performance of SHG in Namakkal District is not upto the expectation level of the researchers.

E. Palani and V.M. Selvaraj (2009)51 in their studies - "Impact of micro credit scheme on women's empowerment", concludes that micro credit has provided the rural poor access to finance without the burden of collateral through SHGs. It has empowered the women folk economically and socially. Though the credit provided is micro in nature. It has produced macro changes in the lives of women who received it.

Tonmaya Dev, Arpita Sharma & Other (2009)52 in their work, "Performance Assessment of self help groups in Madhubani District, Bihar", - None of the SHG members of staff of SHG sakhi reported that they were aware of performance assessment checklist of NABARD. Though as mentioned by NABARD. This checklist is used for granting loans, it is also adopted to assess performance of SHGs. Moreover, all the SHGs had reported that they require loans and till now they have not availed for loans from bank. In this context, the suggestions provided in the above discussion suggested for improvement of performance of SHGs as per checklist of NABARD.

50 Paramasivan, C., "Performance of SHG in Namakkal District, Tamil Nadu, Indian Cooperative Review, April 2009, pp 287-295 51 Palani, E. and Selvaraj, V.M., "Impact of micro-credit scheme on women's empowerment", Indian cooperative Review, October 2009, pp 149-155 52 Dev Tanmaya, Arpita Sharma and Other, "Performance Assessment of Self Help Groups in Madhubani District, Bihar, Indian cooperative Review, July 2009, pp 73-86 66

A. Saraswathy, S. Porkodi and M. Bhuvanswari (2009)53 in their work - Microfinance in Krinshnagiri District : A tool for poverty alleviation studied that microfinance has been recognized as a powerful instrument to address poverty. Apart from the scorching pace of growth, the rapid spread of microfinance (MF) has provided competition, to rural moneylenders. In view of the grand success of the programmes now. SHGs are at center stage in almost every poverty alleviation programmes and development programmes aimed at poor. SHGs have become the development ambassadors of villages and they symbolize the growing face of rural India. The microfinance sector like the information technology (IT) sector has grown rapidly and in many ways, creativity. The experience of many MFI so far strongly suggests that it is possible for these institutions to reach the goal of serving people in extreme poverty without having to sacrifice their profitability. MF is intended for the enlistment of poor farmers, shanty dwellers, jobless youths, women and deprived strata of society.

IIPO Economic Intelligence Unit (2010)54 in its studied "self help groups (SHG) : means of women empowerment", conclude that growth of SHGs are essential for the member as they ensure better standards of living and their by the individual; family and social empowerment. Hence the social empowerment by the SHG members is moderate family empowerment achieved by the members in the family are moderate. Empowering women is pre-requite for creating a good nation- whom are empowered, society with stability assumed. Empowering of women is essential as their thoughts and their value system lead the development of

53 Saraswathy A., S. Parkodi and M. Bhavaneswari, "Microfinance in Krishnagiri District : A Tool for Poverty Alleviation", Indian Journal of Marketing, May 2009, 47-57 54 IIPO Economic Intelligence Unit, "Self Help Groups (SHGs) means of Women Empowerment", Monthly Public Opinion Survey, February 2010, pp. 12-14 67 a good family and good society and ultimately a good nation. In spite of various constitutional safeguards and legislative measures as well as numbers of programmes and policies initiated by the government for the betterment of women, no significant development took place in the socio economic empowerment of women.

Reeta Rautela, Gaurao Pant and Other (2011)55 in their study - "Microfinance - A New mantra for rural development", concluded that microfinance is a powerful for poverty alleviation and development. In order to declare microfinance success in India, not only do tens of millions of more people need to be reached but those services must have a transformational impact on their lives and those of their family members. For that considerable work and continuous efforts are needed to diversity the service of funding for microfinance to attract more foreign investments for well established microfinance institutions (MFIs), to use all the possible channels to serve more rural and urban poor, to develop its staff as more productive and professional to make it more poverty- focused and profitable. Microfinance services can not only solve.

Their own poverty, but can also serve as a complementary tool within a broader strategy to reduce poverty. In reality, poor people need access to many more financial services than just micro-credit, including a range of micro savings and insurance products these services can protect poor people from the impact of unforeseen crisis and emergencies in their household or micro-business, from falling yet further into debt and enable poor household to plan and manage their limited resource more

55 Rautela, Reeta, Gaurao Pant and Others, "Microfinance - A new mantra for Rural Development", International Journal of Science, Technology and Management, December 2011 68 effectively to meet their basic needs. The powerful push behind this huge and increasing support for microfinance indicated that national economic and social impacts are significant and its needs to be examined more closely.

V.J.R. Emerlson Moses (2011)56 in his research paper of economics reported that Jawaharlal Nehru said "you can tell the condition of the nation by looking at the status of women", empowerment of women has emerged as a important issues in our country. In India the further reported that nearly half of the population consists of women. In India their work participation rate is less than half that of men. The role of women in the development of nation is very important nowadays. SHG helps the women in uplifting their living conditions and also encompass the social, economic, educational level to improve their empowerment level. The component of empowerment of women level. The component of empowerment of women are access to economic resources, participation in economic decision making, opportunities for self development, participation in socio-political decision making, scope for skill development and impact on general welfare of the family and community.

Biswas (2006)57, studied and pointed out that there was a proliferation of SHGs in India in the 1980s and 1990s because of the domestic and global policy changes and the economic liberalization and integration of the Indian Economy into the market driven global economy. The SHGs were considered as an entrenched part of the socio

56 Emerlson Moses V.J.R., "Women Empowerment through SHGs : A Microstudy", International Referred Research Journal, January 2011, Vol. II, Issue 16 57 Nilanjana Biswas, On Funding and the NGO Sector, EPW, October 21, 2006, Pages 4406 – 4410 69 economic system and an institutionalized force in fighting the socio economic tensions and problems and in achieving the economic and community development of the country. From the VIII Five Year Plan onwards, the thrust of the Planning Commission has been to open up a space for the SHGs consistent with liberalizing the country’s economy and ushering in the era of public – private partnerships.58 The study further noted that as a result of introduction of the New Economic Policy in India, in 1991, massive inflows of aid into the country began especially from international financial institutions like World Bank, IMF and ADB and such funding was tied to structural conditions like market friendly restructuring and privatization of public enterprises and utilities. As a result of the domestic policy changes in the economy and increased flow of international funding into the country, there was a proliferation of SHGs throughout the country and they received foreign funding on a large scale. The study noted that during 2003 – 04, 147000 SHG groups were registered in India with the Ministry of Home Affairs and they received foreign funding worth Rs. 4856 crores.

By examining the literature on SHG activities spread in various fields and sectors, it could be understood that the majority of writers on SHGs found rather a proliferation of SHGs in the developing countries and particularly in India. The works undertaken by the SHGs were varied encompassing almost all sectors of the economy. Much literature is available on the SHG activity in most of the states in India. The SHGs have taken a leading role in the economic and community development of India in a context in which the traditional agents of development were on the path of withdrawal59.

58 Ibid. Page 4407 59 Ibid 70

In Tamilnadu also it could be seen that the SHGs have undertaken a lot of works and projects leading to the economic and community development of the state. However, not much literature has forth come on the SHG activity in Tamilnadu. The SHGs in the state have organized and implemented various programmes relating to women empowerment, health care, education, poverty alleviation agricultural development, watershed development etc. leading to the economic and community development of the state. In this study, the researcher wanted to examine and evaluate the interventions made by the SHGs in Tamilnadu, in a context in which much literature has no forth come relating to SHG activity in the state and that the SHGs have taken a leading role in the economic and community development in the different parts of the state.

RESEARCH GAP The SHGs have contributed in a big way to the economic and community development of the state of Tamilnadu. However, no serious study has been observed by the researcher relating to the economic and community development interventions of SHGs in general in the state. There have been several serious and well organized studies made on the working of SHGs outside the state and many such studies have been reviewed in the present study. Therefore it has been strongly felt that a look into the economic and community development interventions of SHGs in the state became highly desirable. The SHGs in Tamilnadu have much difference among themselves in the pattern of organization, in the style of making development interventions, in providing development services in in the locality where development interventions were required and also in the pattern of raising development funds. However, the development interventions of SHGs have been highly required and have become successful in those places where the people have been

71 marginalized and remained the most backward. In the present work, an attempt has been made to make a case study of Peermade Development Society, a major SHG making the development interventions in Peermade Taluk of the backward district of Tiruvarur, for the uplift of the socially and economically marginalized and weaker sections of the society in the locality.

Singh (2007)60 in a study conducted in 12 states in India that a multi- stage stratified random sampling method has been applied for the selection of sample of the study. The states have been divided into three strata: (I) where both the schemes of Swa-Shakti & Swayamsiddha are in operation; (II) where Swa-Shakti project is in operation; and (III) where Swayamsiddha project is in operation. Thus, four states from each strata have been randomly selected for the purpose of the study. According to the study, most of the beneficiaries of the projects belong to the age group of 26–45 years, majority of them are found married. The landholding size of the beneficiaries is reported to be small one. The main source of their sustenance is again reported to be agriculture and allied activities. Monthly income of the beneficiaries is reported to be less than Rs.1000. Due to awareness and sensitization programmes conducted by PIAs, the perception and attitude of women members have become positive towards social and developmental issues. Most of the women are found against the social evils like dowry system, child marriage and divorce. The composition of groups also shows that majority of the members belong to SC/ST and OBCs. In most of the cases, the group has been found stable. The meetings are organized on monthly basis and common agendas are discussed in the meetings. The

60 A.K. Singh (2007). Functioning and Performance of Swashakti and Swayamsiddha Project in India. New Delhi: Planning Commission Government of India, p.344 72 decisions are also taken by consensus and voting among members. The group savings is generally collected on the fixed date decided by the groups and the money is deposited in the banks, except a small funds for emergency needs. The bank accounts are generally maintained by President and Secretary of the groups. Majority of the members have awareness and knowledge regarding the group activities. They are also avail the basic services provided in the region. Average savings of SHG members has been reported to be Rs.37 per month. However, the saving rate is much higher in the state of Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Subbalashmi (2009) in her conducted a survey in Kancheepuram block, concludes that about 1/3 of the members have utilized their share from revolving fund for income generation activities most of the members mainly concentrate on petty trade, goat rearing and agriculture based activities. Among the members who had utilized for economic activity, the main activity preferred by them was petty trade followed by goat rearing and agriculture based activities.

CHAPTER - IV SHGs COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND BANK LINKAGE PROGRAMME

In India during the plan period, the strategy for community development was initially growth oriented which later changed to welfare oriented and finally it has become empowerment oriented. At first the development strategy in the country was based on trickledown theory in which emphasis was laid on acceleration of growth on the presumption that its benefits will finally reach the lowest strata and would evenly be distributed among the different regions.

However that approach was not effective in alleviating the rural poverty and reducing the regional imbalances. Therefore the government changed over to a quite different strategy aiming at the welfare of the downtrodden and underprivileged sections of the rural society. This programme also were not effective as the people for whom the program me were meant were not involved in their conception, planning, execution and monitoring people‘s participation in the development process was highly essential of the success of various rural development programme.

Again in India there has been the dismal performance of the government agencies including gross failure of socio-economic development strategy in the post independent period. the result is obviously an ever increasing gap between the small section of rich and the vast middle and lower classes virtually the national GDP is by and large appropriated by hardly a fifth of country’s population and the difference between the urban and rural areas is most glaring which

74 ultimately leads to social tension. The natural resources, both renewable and non-renewable, that constitute the basic wealth of the country, are fastly getting exhausted. Due to improper land use even the renewable life supporting land –water biomass system is fast exceeding the limit of resilience. This is basically due to the diabolical short term strategy to meet the insatiable greed of the organized sectors and the aspect of sustainability of resources for the use of future generation has been totally neglected .the situation is much aggravated by the inordinate and heavy demands of the global market forces which emerged out of the new international trade regines under the W.T.O.

Various aid and self employment programmes have been implemented by the government especially in the rural areas but they were not effective due to the lack of literacy and entrepreneurial skills among rural poor. A group approach self-employment scheme for community development in the rural areas was introduced recently by the government called ‘Swarnajayanthi Gram SwarogarYojana’(SGSY) which replaced the earlier employment and allied programme like IRD, TRYSEM et. it is a holistic program covering all the aspects of self- employment like the organization of the rural poor into self-help Groups (Women SHGs) and their capacity building planning of activity clusters, infrastructure build up technology, credit and marketing the self- employment program of government focused attention on poverty alleviation. However it is to be specified that for materialization of community development there should be the creation of income and wealth on a sustainable basis through investment in gainful and productive employment generating activities and provision of literacy in sproduction lines.

However, the flow of financial assistance to them was too marginal, if at all, to enable them to cross the poverty line. The need to create a grassroots organizational base to enable women to come together, to analyze their issues and problems themselves, and to fulfill their needs was strongly advocated. In fact, experience shows that some of the successful ‘group-based participatory programmers’ have made significant improvement in the conditions of living poor women. The concept of self-help groups gained significance, especially after 1976 when Prof. Mohammed Yunus of Bangladesh began experimenting with micro-credit and Women SHGs. The strategy made a quiet revolution in Bangladesh in poverty eradication by empowering the poor women. Women SHGs are small informal associations created for the purpose of enabling members to reap economic benefit out of mutual help, solidarity, and joint responsibility. The benefits include mobilization of savings and credit facilities and pursuit of group enterprise activities. The group-based approach not only enables the poor to accumulate capital by way of small savings but also helps them to get access to formal credit facilities. These groups by way of joint liability enable the poor to overcome the problem of collateral security and thus free them from the clutches of moneylenders. The joint liability not only improves group members’ accessibility to credit, but also creates mechanisms like peer monitoring leading to better loan recoveries.

Self-help groups are comprised of people who share the same problem, life situation or Crisis. Members provide emotional support to one another; learn new ways to cope, discover strategies for improving their condition, and help others while helping themselves. People find in self help group’s individuals much like themselves who are able to share pragmatic, experience tested insights gained from first-hand experience with the same situation.

Objectives of SHGs: ¾ To sensitize women of target area for the need of SHG and its relevance in their empowerment process. ¾ To create group feeling among women. ¾ To enhance the confidence and capabilities of women. ¾ To develop collective decision making among women. ¾ To encourage habit of saving among women and facilitate the accumulation of their own capital resource base. ¾ To motivate women taking up social responsibilities particularly related to women development.

Thus, the strategy of planned economic development in India, did not produce the desired changes and effectives. Widespread poverty, hunger, malnutrition, deprivation, ill health, unemployment etc. prevail and they contribute to the sufferings of the people especially in the rural areas. The government has organized innumerable schemes and programmes for rural development but not with much success. The factors which led to the failure of the above programmes were the macro level planning approach and non suitability of projects to the local conditions and local know how. What is needed is an integrated micro level planning and implementation of projects in the areas like health, welfare, sanitation, land, water management, road development, housing etc. the projects should be suited to local conditions and knowhow and should be of participatory in nature. Here the NGOs have an advantage over the government organizations (GOs) as NGOs can organize matching projects to local conditions and supplying local know how about the various aspects of the programme. Besides they can ensure the involvement and the participation of the local beneficiary people in the various programme organized for the community development.

Community development has been explained as the process of change from the traditional way of living of rural communities to a progressive way of living by which people can be assisted to develop themselves on their own capacity and resources. Involvement and participation of people are inevitable for the success of the community development programmes because it is a programme for the development of the rural people in their own capacity and with their own resources. Community development can be understood as a process of change from traditional way of living of rural communities. To a progressive way of living: as a method which people can be assisted to develop themselves on their own capacity and resources. As aerogramme for accomplishing certain activities for the welfare of the rural people and as a movement for progress with a certain ideological context. People’s participation becomes the base of community development. Participation may be viewed as voluntary sharing of user’s group, their time, energy and money on the programme and adopt the recommended measures and practices and repair and maintain them in good condition on a sustained basis. Self help is the principle behind the participatory and sustainable development. Self help is an endeavor where the people themselves may actually plan and work on the solution of their problem. If the problems of community are resolved through the efforts of some outside agency, then there will not be the development of group decision, self initiative, self reliance and leadership and entrepreneurship will not be forthcoming and community development will not take place.

When the problem of community development of Tamilnadu is examined, an experience more or less similar to that of the national level experience can be visualized. Tamilnadu is called ‘god’s own country’ which is more or less true and this distinctive status was earned by it because of the beautiful and attractive landscape, friendly climate and the

78 unparalleled social system with a guarded communal harmony and peace. Even when the state experiences low per capita income, industrialization and urbanization, it ranks first in India in HDI. The physical quality of life was very high in the state. All these took place because of the predominant contribution from the tertiary sector (55%) which grew substantially as a result of very high annual inward remittances by the expatriates. In fact, Tamilnadu moved away from the traditional economic development position and it earned what is called the is called the ‘Tamilnadu model of development’. However, the manufacturing sector could not benefit from this because of various reasons. Primarily, there was the lack of an overall investment climate in the state and hence the entrepreneurs have been reluctant to set up production facilities in the state. again, the farm sectors, particularly the commercial crops, were affected by liberalization and globalization. Moreover, the expansion of the tertiary sector was not broad based with the needed linkages. As a result, the higher economic growth in the state did not lead to higher employment opportunities for the people and to a comprehensive welfare of all sections of the population in Tamilnadu.

Even when Tamilnadu ranks very high in the social sector and community development, its performance is sidelined a lot of factors. In the social sector activities of the state, particularly in the field of health, sanitation and environment production, the performance is dismal. There is a higher incidence of life style and non-communicable diseases like diabetics, hypertension, mental disease and heart diseases in the state than in the other states. Nearly one percent of the population is affected by mental illness and three percent of the population suffers from minor mental disorders. The incidence of cancer has been increasing over the past years and there is the spreading of the intense respiratory infection especially among the urban population. Moreover, the state has an

79 estimated HIV population between seventy thousand and one lakh. For the comprehensive economic development of the state, measure have to be taken for solving the problems of unemployment and for the uplift of socially and economically weaker sections of the populations, especially those in the rural areas. For this, there should be the expansion of operations in the social sectors like public health, education, sanitation, environment production etc. various programmes may be organized and implemented in the above fields which aim at the common people and which are truly participatory in nature.

The government alones is not successful in organizing and implementing the various community development programmes in the social sectors with the active participation of the people and hence the role of the state is declining in social welfare and community development. The government is gradually withdrawing from the public funding for community development activities due to the increasing fiscal deficit of the government and under the pressure of policies of liberalization, privatization and globalization.

Moreover, the investments in social sector and community development activities will not produce direct benefits or return to the exchequer. With the declining role of the state in the social welfare and community development services NGOs are increasingly gaining attention and prominence. They can act as the alternative agencies in promoting awareness, changes and also development in the society as their approach to development is based on the principle of people’s participation. NGOs have emerged as a distinct organizational type and gained attention as a major alternative to the government directed development.

In Tamilnadu, the social sector and community development programmes are promoted largely by Panchayat Raj institutions and NGOs. PRIs require the participation of the local people and the help of local NGOs to organize the micro enterprises which utilizes the power and the resources of the locality. The role of NGOs has become vital in mobilizing the financial resources and providing skill and technology development. The various NGOs in the state are providing training to the rural people in skill development with the financial assistance from the CAPART and similar other national and state level agencies. One major NGO working in the field of economic and community development of Tamilnadu, is peer made development society, operating in the Thiruvarur District. The major activities of Thiruvarur District in the field of community development are; organizing self help groups (Women SHGs) as social platforms for the people’s discussion of issues, organizing strategies for the capacity building and awareness creation, the women development programmes, rural micro enterprises development, the tribal development, technology development and popularization and finally collaboration and networking with various people’s movements.

The community development endeavours of the Thiruvarur Districtc over almost all fields relating to rural economic development and the presence of the society is very strongly felt in these areas. However, the present study intends to highlight community development interventions of the Thiruvarur District(SHG) in four areas of rural development where its presence is very strongly felt. The above four areas are;

(1) Micro finance (2) Micro enterprises development (3) Human resources development and (4) Housing and social welfare.

MICRO FINANCE Micro finance is a novel approach to ‘banking with poor’ and it attempts to combine lower transactions cost and high degree of repayments. It is essentially because of the large involvement of the potential beneficiaries of rural credit in the credit delivery mechanism. Micro finance refers to the provision of small savings, credit and insurance services to the lowest, socially and economically disadvantaged segments of the society. Otherwise, micro finance is a financial service of small quantity provided by the financial institutions to the poor and they include savings, credit, insurance, leasing and any type of financial service with the condition that the transaction value is small and customers are the poor.

Through the micro finance, thrift, credit and the other financial services and products in very small quantities are provided to the poor in the rural, semi urban and the urban areas in order to raise their level of income and improve their living standards. A number of micro finance initiatives have been introduced in the country in the recent years.

The major thrust of these micro finance initiatives is through the setting up of self help groups (Women SHGs), NGOs and credit unions. In India, NABARD has actively promoted these initiatives through SHG – bank linkage programme and training and also through providing refinance, revolving fund assistance and grants. In actual practice, micro

82 finance consists of the entire range of financial and non financial services which includes skill up – gradation and entrepreneurship development to the poor for alleviating poverty and raise the rural income. Micro finance is at present highlighted and accepted As a new development paradigm for alleviating poverty through the social and economic empowerment of the poor, especially the women.

Micro finance initiative was actually the result of an idea generated by prof. Muhammad Yunus of Bangladesh, during the period 1974 -76, who initiated the process of organizing the poor into self help groups and making them realize the very ‘basic theory of survival’. It has now become more or less a revolutionary movement throughout the world and most of the developing countries, especially those in Asia, have adopted it as a comprehensive and participatory method of achieving the economic uplift and the community development of the country. The micro finance paradigm has been adopted even in the advanced countries of the world with the twin objectives of women empowerment and poverty alleviation. The highly organized financial institutions and commercial banks have come up to establish linkages with the self help groups in this field by announcing special packages under micro finance.

A multiplicity of programmes have been organized in the country in the rural areas but they have failed to focus on the core issue of poverty alleviation through creation and sustainable income generating activities. The experience of different poverty eradication and welfare programmes implemented throughout the world have shown that the key to their success rested up on the evolution and participation of community based organizations at the grass roots level. People’s participation in the credit delivery and recovery and linking the formal

83 credit institutions borrowers through intermediaries of Women SHGs have been recognized as a supplementary mechanism for providing credit support to the rural poor. In India, the formal beginning of micro finance was made in the year 1992 and since then the micro finance sector has grown at an accelerated pace. The U N has declared 2005 as the year of micro credit in order to increase the awareness of micro finance as a means to achieve economic and human development. It is the result of the clear understanding that micro finance or provision of financial services to low income households has come to be accepted as the most efficacious intervention to alleviate poverty in the developing countries. The micro finance paradigm fitted well with the advantage of growth with equity which is the greatest agenda in the reformation of developing countries.

The logical foundation of promoting micro finance in the country, mainly in the non financial sector, is situated upon the apparent failure of state owned institutions and cooperative institutions to reach out to the poor and also on the rather disappointing performance of the poverty alleviation programmes organized by the government. The primary of the community organization and people’s participation in the financial service sector has been the very central theme of most of the micro finance centered poverty alleviation programmes. There is the social intermediation through the Women SHGs or solidarity groups so that financing becomes cost effective. Group lending avoids the intermediation of credit brokers between banks and the clients and also reduces individual transactions costs in a big way.

In India, the micro finance institutions fall under two broad sectors, namely, the financial sector and non financial sector. Commercial banks, regional rural banks and cooperative banks constitute the financial sector. Three major organizational forms are observed in the non financial sector, namely, not- for – profit micro finance institutions Which includes the NGOs, trusts and certain forms of companies, mutual benefit micro finance institutions which includes state credit cooperatives, national credit cooperatives, and mutually aided cooperatives and for profit micro finance institutions which includes non banking financial companies.

Among the above said institutions the first and the last considered to as innovative arrangement in the field of financial intermediation. The NGOs, Women SHGs and federation of groups who serve as non formal financial intermediaries have demonstrated considerable financial flexibility and dynamism in responding to the demands at the grass roots. In the micro finance approach to poverty reduction, NGOs are the most preferred intermediaries as they are particularly good providers of the socially oriented financial services especially in the rural areas. Most of the NGOs are organizing the micro finance services through self help groups.

Presently, micro finance has become a part of lending operations of banks in India and through it micro credit is provided to very small borrowers who are normally outside the reach of institutional credit agencies. NABARD has been working well as a catalyst in promoting micro finance and linking Women SHGs to the banking system. A micro finance development fund was constituted by NABARD for scaling up the SHG linkage programme and for supporting other micro credit initiatives. By the concerted efforts of banks, regional rural banks,

85 cooperative banks and NGOs, about eight lakh Women SHGs have been formed in the different parts of the country. NABARD aims at linking one million Women SHGs in India involving twenty million poor households with the help of nearly four thousand NGOs and thousand microfinance institutions.

Table No. 4.1 Growth of micro finance in India

NABARD No. of Women Bank loan Year refinance SHGs (Rs. Crores) (Rs.Crores) 2001-2002 255 0.289 0.286 2002-2003 620 0.650 0.459 2003-2004 2112 2.440 2.303 2012-2013 4757 6.058 5.661 2005-2006 8598 11.840 10.650 2006-2007 14317 23.760 21.380 2007-2008 32995 57.070 52.060 2008-2009 114775 192.870 150.130 2009-2010 263825 480.870 250.620 2010-2011 461478 545.460 395.730 Source: Survey of Indian economics, April 2011. Women SHGs: self help groups.

Table No.4.1 A tremendous growth in India in the number of self help groups (Women SHGs) under the micro finance initiatives at different levels. In 2001-2002 there were only 255 Women SHGs with a total of Rs. 0.289 crores as bank link loans and the NABARD providing a refinance to the extent of Rs. 268 crores to the banks. However, in 2010- 2011, there was a total of 461478 Women SHGs throughout the country

86 with Rs. 545.460 crores as the bank link loans and NABARD providing refinance to the extent of Rs. 395.730 crores.

The substantial efforts and the large volume of credit extended by the formal financial institutions and the commercial banks the through poverty alleviation intervention programmes have not been able to produce expected benefits to the poor and the weaker sections due to the inherent contradictions in the implementation. The micro finance, which has succeeded in many developing countries of the world in the poverty eradication and income generation, has been looked as a workable tool to address the deeply felt challenges of poverty and economic backwardness. Micro finance could be designed practically, to contribute to a very wide range of development objectives like promoting livelihood, empowering women and changing the wider systems of the society for poverty eradication.

In Tamilnadu, the micro finance initiatives have been taken up extensively at different levels. In fact, the largest micro finance institution in the state is the government promoted SHG’s. It is a mission formed for the total eradication of absolute poverty in ten years through concerted community action under the leadership of local self government institutions, by facilitating the organization of the poor women in the rural areas for combining self help with the demand led convergence of available services and resources. It is an innovative community based, women oriented and participatory poverty eradication programme. During 2004 -05, under SHG in the state, the thrift collection touched Rs. 473.57 crores and lending stood at Rs. 1004 crores. In the year 2004 -05, 154699 neighborhood groups (NHGs) have been working under the SHGs in the state covering almost 3155030 familie he concept

87 of self help groups is the most exciting discovery in the micro finance. Women SHGs are informed groups of individuals voluntarily formed and democratically managed in order to realize a common goal. Micro credit has worked largely through self help groups in general and women groups in particular. SHGs is a small group of 10 to 20members coming from a relatively homogenous background and They know what benefit they would attain from the group through micro credit. Micro credit benefits the Women SHGs to improve the quality of life of its members and increase their productivity to earn sustainable income.

The Thiruvarur District women SHGs has organized and implemented its micro finance operations through formulated under its leadership and guidance. Women SHGs are small, communistically homogenous and affinity groups of rural or urban poor voluntarily formed to save and contribute to a common fund to be lent to its members as per group decision and for working together for the social and economic uplift of families and community. The process of organization of Women SHGs was started by SHG in the year 2001-2002 and 35 Women SHGs have been promoted in the same year. Since then, there was a tremendous growth in the number of Women SHGs under the SHG.

Table No. 4.2 Number of Women SHGs promoted by SHGs from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 in Thiruvarur District

Number of Year Women Cumulative SHGs 2005-2006 35 35 2006-2007 102 137 2007-2008 195 332 2008-2009 230 562 2009-2010 275 837 2010-2011 315 1152 2011-2012 340 1492 2012-2013 210 1702 Total 1702 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District

It is understood from the table no. 4.2, In the year 2005-2006, there were only 35 Women SHGs promoted by SHGs in the different parts of the peer made taluk. Since then there has been a substantial increase in the number of Women SHGs under SHG. The number of Women SHGs under SHG increased to 1702 in 2012-2013.

The table 4.2 above has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as given below.

Figure 4.1 Growth of Women SHGs under SHG

NUMBER OF SHGs PROMOTED FROM 2005-2013 1800

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0 years 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

Column2 Column3 Column1

As may be understood from the simple bar chart above, there has been a more or less regular increase in the number of Women SHGs promoted by SHG. However, in the year 2012-2013 the number of Women SHGs promoted by SHG has decreased and only 201 Women SHGs have been promoted by SHG. It has been because of the expansion of the network of Women SHGs promoted by SHG already in the peer made Taluk and also due to the expansion of SHG network in the locality.

The SHG’s has well been able to propagate and popularize the concept of micro finance and its benefits among the people in the Thiruvarur District and which led to a substantial increase in the number of Women SHGs.. The micro finance operations of Women SHGs monitored effectively by the animators appointed by the society and there by linkages are established between the Women SHGs and banks. The Women SHGs carry out the micro finance operations effectively and

90 promote the mobilization of small internal savings, the disbursement of micro credit, monitor the regular and effective repayment of loans and also provide insurance coverage to the members of families under the Women SHGs

The micro finance operations have been organized in the Thiruvarur District also by the community development societies (CDS) under SHG mission initiated by government of Tamilnadu. The community development societies have promoted a large number of neighborhood groups (NHGs) in the Thiruvarur taluk. The micro finance initiatives under the SHG was started in the Thiruvarur District in the year 2008- 2009 and nearly 359 NHGs were promoted in the Thiruvarur taluk in the same year. By 2012-2013, the number of NHGs were promoted by the community development societies under the SHG increased to 1560. The table 4.3 below shows the increase in the number of NHGs over the years 2008-09-2012-13.

Table 4.3 Number of NHGs promoted under SHGs

Year Name of NHGsCumulative 2008-2009 359 359 2009-2010 361 720 2010-2011 440 1160 2011-2012 177 1337 2012-2013 223 1560 Total 1560 Source: Handbook of Thiruvarur District

By examining the table no. 4.2 and 4.3 it may be seen that there has been a comparatively higher average growth rate for Women SHGs of the NHGs under the SHGs. The average growth rate of Women SHGs

91 has been about 90% while that of NHGs has been about 48%. The reasons for the higher growth rate for the Women SHGs may be understood as; (1) NGOs can play a crucial role in motivating the people and supervising the distribution and use of resources with a view to ensure its proper utilization. SHG is a major NGO working in the Thiruvarur District and it has more access to the people at the local level with which the society could organize people’s initiatives in a better way. (2) SHGs started promoting as early as 2005-2006 while the SHG initiative in the Thiruvarur District was started only in the year 2009-2010. The growth of Women SHGs and the NHGs under SHG has been presented in the form of better a comparison as shown in the figure 4.2 below.

Figure No. 4.2 Growth of Women SHGs under SHG and NHGs under SHG

GROWTH OF SHG 2000 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

Series 1 Series 2 Column1

As may be understood from the figure no.4.2, there has been a more or less regular increase in the number of Women SHGs such regularity may be seen in the case of NHGs under SHG. The reason behind this may be explained as while the growth of Women SHGs took place gradually with the popularization of the advantages, SHG through campaign and awareness generation programmes, the growth of NHGs under SHG took place as a result of the mass movement for poverty eradication and rural development sponsored by the government of Tamilnadu.

Mobilization of savings One of the primary objectives of Women SHGs under micro finance is to promote the small savings of their members. It is the small savings that constitute the base and the strength of micro finance operations of Women SHGs. SHG has been able to promote thrift in a very significant manner among the SHG members over the years 2005- 2006-2012 to 2013. The small savings of the members have been mobilized on a weekly basis and credited to the joint account of the SHG group in the nearest bank.

In fact, one of the most important aspects of micro finance initiative was the promotion of small savings among the poorest sections of the society which could be utilized for their own betterment. The small savings mobilized from the poorest strata of the society may be utilized for the promotion of micro enterprises which may generate self employment and income for the poor on a sustained basis .Through the micro finance initiative, poverty eradication and improvement in the living conditions of the people in the rural areas can be materialized.

The table no. 4.4 below shows the savings mobilized from among the SHG members and internal loans disbursed by SHG through the Women SHGs among its members from2005-2006to2012-2013.. The saving – internal lending ratio also has been shown in the table over the years 2005-2006to2012-2013.

Table No. 4.4 Savings – internal lending ratio of Women SHGs under SHG (in Rs.lakhs)

Internal Savings Saving – internal Year lending (Rs. Lakhs) Lending Radio (Rs. Lakhs) 2005-2006 1.58 0.85 0.54 2006-2007 4.59 4.52 0.98 2007-2008 11.76 11.48 0.98 2008-2009 18.32 22.65 1.24 2009-2010 24.04 40.36 1.68 2010-2011 26.17 35.13 1.34 2011-2012 29.98 83.51 2.79 2012-2013 18.93 66.65 3.52 Total 135.37 265.15 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District

From the table no 4.4 it is under stood that there has been a substantial increase in the savings mobilized by the Women SHGs under SHG over the years from 2005 – 06 to 2012 – 13. The savings increased from Rs. 1.58 lakhs in2005-2006to2012-2013,From the table 4.4 above, it may be seen that there is an apparent relationship between the years and the savings mobilized, i.e. the increase in savings fromin2005-

2006to2012-2013 has been significant. In order to test the statistical significance of this apparent relationship, a linear regression model has been fitted to the data to the data relating to savings in the table no 4.4. Since the savings are found related to year, we are interested in fitting a linear regression model of the form

Y = a + bx Where ‘x’ stands for year and ‘y’ stands for savings. Using excel package of statistical tools the equation turned out to be Y = 11.8125 + 2.76x Where a = 11.8125 (y intereept) And b = 2.76 ( regression coefficient) In order to test whether the regression coefficient b is significant or not, the null hypothesis has been formulated as Ho: b = 0 Where b = regression coefficient The alternative hypothesis formulated has been; Hi : b # 0 The null hypotheses ho : b = 0 has been tested against the alternative Hypothesis, hi :b # 0. In the testing procedure, the P value has been found very small, i.e, P = 0.007343 Since the P value has been found very small, it is concluded that the regression coefficient is significant. The null hypothesis, Ho : b = 0, is rejected and the alternative hypothesis, Hi : b # 0, is accepted. Thus it may be understood that this model is worth using in any year to get the corresponding value of savings. Therefore, it is concluded that there has been a significant increase in the mobilization of savings by the Women SHGs under SHG over the years from in2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

MICRO CREDIT Micro credit to the poorest enables them to acquire gainful employment in order to raise their level of income and improve their living standards.it is a powerful instrument for the poverty alleviation in the rural areas. By way of micro credit, the poor people take advantage of the existing opportunities, build up their assets, generate self employment and develop micro enterprises which may ultimately lead to an increase in their level of income and an improvement in their standard of living. Micro credit to poor is distributed to the members of Women SHGs by way of both internal lending and also availing bank link loans through SHG bank linkage. Women SHGs have proved to be a very effective mechanism for the distribution of small loans to the poorest and the weakest sections of the population.

Women SHGs have maintained a very high savings – internal lending ratio over the years. It was 0.54 in 2005-2006 and in 2012-2013, it increased to 3.52. A very high savings – internal lending ratio was maintained by Women SHGs under SHG because there has been a very high rate of repayment of loans by the members of Women SHGs in installments along with the interest which could be utilized effectively for the distribution of further loans to the members.

Table 4.5 below shows the internal lending by the Women SHGs among their members from in2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No 4.5 Internal lending by the Women SHGs under SHG Internal lending Cumulative Year (Rs. Lakhs) Total 2005-2006 0.85 0.85 2006-2007 4.52 5.37 2007-2008 11.48 16.85 2008-2009 22.65 39.50 2009-2010 40.36 79.86 2010-2011 35.13 114.99 2011-2012 83.51 198.50 2012-2013 66.65 265.15 Total 265.15 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District The internal lending by the Women SHGs has shown the trend for an increase over the years. In 2005-2006 internal lending was Rs. O.85 lakhs which increased over the years and became Rs.66.65 lakhs in 2012- 2013. The internal lending has been Rs. 4.52 lakhs in 2006-2007 which increased to Rs. 11.48 lakhs in 2007-2008, to Rs. 22.65 in 2008-2009, and to Rs.40.36 lakhs in 2009-2010. However, in 2010-2011, it decreased to Rs 35.13 lakhs. Again, in 2011-2012, internal savings increased to Rs.83.51 lakhs which decreased to Rs.66.65 lakhs in2012-2013. There has been increase in the internal lending by Women SHGs for all the years except for 2009 -10 and 2011 – 12. From the table no 4.5, it may be understood that the growth of internal lending has been significant.

For better observation of the trend growth in the internal lending, the table no 4.5 may be shown in the form of a graph as given below.

Figure 4.3 Growth of internal lending by the Women SHGs under SHG

YEAR WISE INTERNAL LENDING 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 2005- 2006- 2007- 2008- 2009- 2010- 2011- 2012- 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Column3

As may be understood from the graph, the internal lending by the Women SHGs has shown a substantial increase it increased from Rs. 0.85 lakhs in 2005-2006 Rs. 66.65 lakhs in 2012-2013, significant increase in internal lending can be observed over the years except for 2011-2012- and 2012-2103 as compared to the previous years.

The internal lending by the Women SHGs under SHG has increased substantially over the years since 2012-2013. Generally, the Women SHGs have been often able to lend much in excess of what has been mobilized as savings. It is because the loan repayments are madeIn installments along with interest and they may be utilized for further lending according to the requirements of the members of Women SHGs.

The table no 4.5 shows that the internal lending by the Women SHGs from 2005-2006 and from the table it may be understood that there

98 is apparently a significant increase in internal lending by Women SHGs from the year 2012-2013 to 2012-2013. In order to test the statistical significance of this relationship between internal lending and the years, a linear regression model has been fitted to the data relating to internal lending by the Women SHGs. Since the internal lending is found related to the year, we are interested in fitting a linear regression model has been fitted to the data relating to internal lending by the Women SHGs. Since the internal lending is found related to the year, we are interested in fitting a linear regression model of the form Y= a b x Where x = year Y = internal lending a = y intercept and b = regression coefficient. Using the excel package of statistical tools, the equation turned out to be Y = - 22453.67 + 11.2406 x In order to test whether the regression coefficient b is significant or not, the null hypothesis has been formulated as Ho: b = 0 The alternative hypothesis formulated has been hi: b #0 The null hypothesis Ho: b = 0 has been tested against the alternative Hypothesis Hi: b # 0. In the testing procedure, the P value found has been 0.00087

Since the P value has been found very small, it is concluded that the regression coefficient is significant. The null hypothesis, Ho: b= 0 is rejected and the alternative hypothesis Hi: b +#0 is accepted. It may be understood that this model is worth using in any year to get the corresponding value of internal savings by the Women SHGs. Therefore,

99 it may be concluded that the growth of internal lending by the SHG under SHG from the year 2006-2007to 2012-2013 has been highly significant.

Again, there has been an effective linkage between banks and the Women SHGs under SHG. Through bank SHG linkage, link loans could be availed in large quantities and a substantial amount of micro credit could be distributed among the members. The table 4.6 below shows the number of Women SHGs under SHG linked to banks in various years, the linkage rate and the amount of link loans availed by the Women SHGs.

Table 4.6 Linkage between banks and Women SHGs No. of Number of Women Year Linkage rate Link loans Women SHGs percentage ( Rs.Lakhs) SHGs linked to banks 2005-2006 35 0 0 0 2006-2007 137 0 0 0 2007-2008 332 20 6.0 0.35 2008-2009 562 64 11.4 13.45 2009-2010 837 460 55.0 35.48 2010-2011 1152 1108 96.2 175.65 2011-2012 1492 1405 94.2 247.50 2012-2013 1702 1702 100.0 317.85 Total 790.28 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District

It is understood from the table no 4.6, before 2007 there was no linkage between banks and Women SHGs. The number of Women SHGs linked to banks has been 20 out of 332 in 2007-2008 with a linkage rate

100 equal to 6%. However, by 2012-2013, all the Women SHGs have been linked to banks with linkage rate equal to 100%. Also, there has been a substantial increase in the bank link loans availed by the Women SHGs from 2005-2006 t o2012-2013. The link loans by the Women SHGs increased from Rs. 0.35 lakhs to Rs. 317.85 lakhs in 2012-2013. The graph 4.4 shows the growth of bank loans availed by the Women SHGs from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Figure 4.4 Year wise growth of bank loans availed by the SHG’s

NO OF SHG LINKED TO BANK LOANS 1800

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0 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

NO OF SHG LINKED TO BANK LOANS

From the graph, it is be understood that there has been a very significant increase in the bank loans especially from the year 2008-2009 to 2012-2013. Again, to test the statistical significance of the growth of bank loans, the linear regression model has been fitted to the data. Since the bank loan has been found related to year, a linear regression model of the form

101

Y= a+ b x Has been fitted where x = year And y = bank loans. Using the statistical tools, the equation turned out to be Y = -138819 + 69.42343x Where b = (regression coefficient)

In order to test the significance of the regression coefficient, the null hypothesis has been formulated as Ho: b = o and the alternative hypothesis has been Hi: b # 0. The null hypothesis has been tested against the alternative hypothesis and in the testing procedure P value has been found as follows; P = 0.00177.

Since the P value has been found very small, it may be concluded that the regression coefficient is significant. The null hypothesis, Ho: b =0 is rejected and the alternative hypothesis, Hi: b # 0 is accepted. It may be understood that this model is worth using in any year to get the corresponding value of bank loan. Therefore, it may be concluded that the growth of bank link loans availed by the Women SHGs from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 for the disbursement among these members has been highly significant.

The linkage between banks and the Women SHGs has been observed to be very significant and a total of Rs. 790.28 lakhs have been availed by the Women SHGs as link loans and distributed among the members. A comparison between the SHG bank linkage and NHG bank linkage may show that the SHG bank linkage has been very significant over the years.

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Table 4.7 below shows NHG bank linkage under SHG initiative from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013.

Table 4.7 Bank NHG Linkage under SHG

No. of Bank link Number of NHGs Linkage rate Year loans NHGs linked to (Perecentage) (Rs. Lakhs) banks 2008-2009 359 30 8.35 5.43 2009-2010 720 67 9.31 18.85 2010-2011 1160 93 8.02 42.18 2011-2012 1337 160 11.96 77.98 2012-2013 1560 467 29.92 319.62 Total 464.06 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District

The bank linkage rate for NHGs has been 8.35%. In 2008-2009 to 2012-2013 it increased to 29.92%. 30 out of 359 NHGs have been linked to banks 2008-2009while it increased to 467 out of 1560 in 2012-2013. The amount of bank link loans has been Rs. 5.43 lakhs in 2008-2009 while it increased to Rs. 319.62 lakhs in the year 2012-2013. The total amount of link loans availed by the NHGs and distributed among the members from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013 has been Rs.464.06 lakhs.

However, the bank linkage rate has been high for the Women SHGs for various years. The linkage rate of Women SHGs has been much 11.4% in 2008-09 while it has been only 8.35% for the NHGs. There has been much difference between the linkage rate of Women SHGs and that of the NHGs in the years 2005-06 to 2010-11.In the year 2012-2013, there has been 100% linkage for the Women SHGs while that of NHGs has been

103 only 29.92%. Again, from 2005-06 to 2012-2013, the Women SHGs have availed and distributed Rs. 789.93 lakhs as link loans while the NHGs have availed and distributed only an amount equal to Rs.464.06 lakhs. The table no.4.8 below shows the bank link rate of Women SHGs and NHGs.

Table No.4.8 Bank linkage rate of Women SHGs and NHGs

Year SHG – bank linkage NHG – bank linkage rate (%) rate (%) 2008-2009 11.4 8.35 2009-2010 55.0 9.31 2010-2011 96.2 8.02 2011-2012 94.2 11.96 2012-2013 100.0 29.92 Source : Primary Data

Table no 4.8 shows the bank linkage rates of Women SHGs and NHGs. By the year 2012-2013, there has been 100% bank linkage for Women SHGs while there has been only 29.92% linkage for NHGs. However, in order know the statistical relevance of the difference in the linkage rate the data have been tested using one tailed t – test of the two samples assuming unequal variances. The Null hypothesis Ho: u1=u2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis,

Hi:u1> u2 Where u1 and u2 Are the mean of the first and second variables respectively? The t – test has been conducted using the excel package of statistical tools.

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In the testing procedure, the P value has been observed as P = 0.01505 Since the P value has been very small we reject the null hypothesis Ho : u1 > u2 and accept the alternative hypothesis Hi : u1 > u2

It means that the mean value of the linkage rates of the Women SHGs have been shown to be much higher than that of the linkage rates of NHGs under the SHGs initiative and it may be concluded that the difference between the linkage rates of Women SHGs and NHGs under SHGs is statistically relevant. The linkage Women SHGs has been significantly greater than that of the NHGs under the Thiruvarur District initiative.

It has been observed that the Women SHGs have made the best use of the linkage facilities available with the formal banking institutions by which they could avail and distribute much more amount of micro credit among their members. The micro credit through the bank link loans has been more than what they could distribute by way of internal lending. The SHGs has been able to work out a very effective network of SHG Bank linkage by which they could link all the Women SHGs with the formal banking institutions. The table 4.9 below shows the total credit supplied, bank link loans and the total credit – bank loan ratio of Women SHGs.

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Table No.4.9 Total credit bank loan ratio of Women SHGs

Total credit Bank loan Total credit Year (Rs. Lakhs) (Rs. Lakhs) bank loan ratio 2005-2006 0.85 0.00 0.00 2006-2007 5.37 0.00 0.00 2007-2008 17.20 0.35 0.02 2008-2009 52.95 13.45 0.25 2009-2010 115.33 35.48 0.31 2010-2011 290.64 175.65 0.60 2011-2012 446.02 247.50 0.55 2012-2013 583.00 317.85 0.54 Source : Handbook of Thiruvarur District

It may be understood from the table no 4.9 that there has been a more or less a substantial increase in the micro credit distributed by the Women SHGs among their members. In 2005-2006, the total credit supplied by them has been Rs. 0.85 lakhs and it increased to Rs. 583 lakhs in 2012-13. There has been no bank link loans in the years 2005-06 and 2006-07. In 2008-09, the bank link loans has been Rs. 0.35 lakhs and it increased to Rs.317.85 lakhs in the year 2012-2013. In 2012-2013, the bank link loan has been 2% of the total credit while it increased to 54% of the total credit in the year 2012-13. Again, the total amount of bank link loans availed and distributed by the Women SHGs from 2008-09 to 2012- 13 has been Rs. 789.93 lakhs.

The micro finance operations have been largely undertaken in Tamilnadu under the SHGs sponsored by the government of Tamilnadu. The neighborhood groups (NHGs) under SHG have been linked to banks and they have availed bank link loans for distribution among their

106 members. In the present study, the bank link loans availed by Women SHGs and NHGs in the Thiruvarur District have been compared for understanding the significance of Women SHGs under SHG in this regard. The secondary data have been collected on SHG operations in the Thiruvarur District for five years from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013. The bank link loans availed and distributed among the members by the Women SHGs has been much higher than the amount of bank link loans availed and distributed by the NHGs under SHGs among their members in the Thiruvarur District. The table 4.10 below shows the total credit, internal lending, bank loan and total credit – bank loan ratio of NHGs under SHG in the Thiruvarur District from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013.

Table No. 4.10 Credit supplied by the NHGs

Internal Total credit – Total credit Bank loans Year loans bank loan (Rs.lakhs) (Rs. Lakhs) (Rs.lakhs) Ratio 2008-2009 40.82 35.39 5.43 0.13 2009-2010 96.86 78.01 18.85 0.19 2010-2011 681.99 639.81 42.18 0.06 2011-2012 779.92 701.94 77.98 0.09 2012-2013 1491.37 1171.75 319.62 0.21 Source: Primary Data.

By examining the amount of bank link loans and total credit – bank loan ratio of Women SHGs in the table 4.9 and the amount of bank link loans and the total credit – bank loan ratio of the NHGs under SHG in the table no 4.10, it may be seen that the radio between total credit and the bank loan has been very high for the Women SHGs compared to that of NHGs. It has been 0.25 in 2008-2009 for the Women SHGs while that of

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NHGs increased to 0.21 in the same year. Thus, apparently there has been much difference between the total credit- bank loan ratio of Women SHGs and NHGs. Therefore, it may be concluded that there has been a better linkage of Women SHGs with the banks and more distribution of link loans among the members of the Women SHGs.

However, it is important to test whether there is any statistical significance of this difference in the total credit – bank loan ratio of the Women SHGs and the NHGs. For this, the data have been tested using two tailed t – test of the two samples assuming unequal variances. The null hypothesis, Ho:u1= u2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis, Hi:u1> u2 Where u1 and u2 are the mean of the first and second variables respectively. The t-test has been conducted using the excel package of statistical tools. In the testing procedure, the P value has been 0.045659 Since the P value has been comparatively small, we reject the null hypothesis Ho: u1 = u2 and accept the alternative hypothesis Hi: u1 > u2

Thus, it may be concluded that there is the statistical significance for the difference in the ratios of Women SHGs and the NHGs. The total credit – bank loan ratio of Women SHGs has been proved to be much higher than that of NHGs. Also it has been proved that the mean values of total credit- bank loan ratios of Women SHGs and NHGs are different and that of Women SHGs is higher than that of NHGs.

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The data regarding the distribution of micro credit among the poor and weaker sections of the population in the rural areas by five primary co – operative banks in the peer made taluk have been collected for comparison with that of the Women SHGs and to understand the significance of the amount of micro credit distributed by the Women SHGs among their members. The five co – operative banks have been selected on the basis of the availability of data relating to their micro credit operations in the local area. The table 4.11 below shows the micro credit distributed by five cooperative banks among the poor and weaker sections in the peer made taluk from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No.4.11 Distribution of micro credit by five Co – operative banks

Micro credit by five co – Year operative Average banks (Rs.lakhs)

2008-09 40.73 25.01 59.77 84.58 92.59 60.53 2009-10 46.82 27.48 65.69 95.04 101.75 67.35 2010-11 53.81 29.25 73.72 105.61 118.22 76.14 2011-12 61.71 30.51 80.81 62.90 128.43 72.87 2012-13 62.27 35.58 85.02 53.56 135.67 74.42 Total 265.34 147.83 365.11 401.69 576.66 Source: published data from the Co – operative banks.

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By examining the table no 4.11 and comparing it with the column 2 of the previous table no. 4.9, it may be seen that the total micro credit distributed by the Women SHGs has been more than that of the individual total micro credit distributed by the first four of the co – operative banks and more or less equal to that of the fifth cooperative bank. The Women SHGs have been observed to be successful in extending small loans to the poor and weaker sections of the society.

For a better understanding of the data, the average amount of the micro credit distributed by the five co – operative banks for each year also has been obtained for comparison. The table 4.12 below shows the micro credit distributed by the five co – operative banks from the year 2005- 2006 to 2012-13 and the average of the amount of the micro credit extended by the co – operative banks has been compared with that of the Women SHGs.

Table No.4.12 Micro credit by the Women SHGs and the average of the micro credit By five Co- operative banks

Micro credit by Average small loan by Year Women SHGs Co – operative banks (Rs. Lakhs) (Rs.lakhs) 2008-09 35.73 60.53 2009-10 62.38 67.35 2010-11 175.31 76.14 2011-12 155.40 72.87 2012-13 137.29 74.42 Source: Primary Data.

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By examining the above table no 4.12, it may be seen that the micro credit distributed by the Women SHGs has been slightly lower than the average of that of the five co – operative banks for the years 2008-09 to 2009-10. However, for the years 2010-11, 2011-12,2012-13the micro credit by the Women SHGs has been substantially higher than the average of that of the five co – operative banks. The mean value has been 113.222 for the Women SHGs while for the cooperative banks has been 70.262. From, this, it can be understood that the distribution of micro credit by the Women SHGs has been significantly large and it has led to the economic and community development of the Peer made taluk.

The statistical significance of the mean value differences of Women SHGs and the Cooperative banks has been tested using the one tailed t- test assuming unequal variances.

The null hypothesis Ho: u1=u2 has been tested against the alternative Hypothesis, Hi:u1>u2

Where u1 and u2 are the mean of the first and second variables respectively. The t – test has been conducted using the excel package of statistical tools.

In the testing procedure, the P value has been observed as P = 0.045693 Since the P value has been found to be relatively small, we reject the null Hypothesis,

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Ho: u1=u2 and accept the alternative hypothesis, Hi: u1 > u2 Thus, from the statistical test, it can be understood that the difference in the mean values is statistically significant. It means that, the Women SHGs have been able, on an Average, to distribute more micro credit among the poor and the weaker sections of the society, compared to that of a cooperative bank in the Thiruvarur District.

Repayment of Loans One of the most important reasons for the failure of distribution of micro credit to the poor by the formal banking and repayment of loans by the poor. Consequently, the banks and the other formal financial institutions have been reluctant to provide micro credit to the poor. One important mission of the Self Help Groups has been to monitor the timely and effective repayment of small loans by the poor.

The Women SHGs promoted by the NON-governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Tamilnadu, have been very successful in this regard. As a result, there has been uninterrupted flow of micro credit to the poor and their regular repayments under the monitoring of the Women SHGs. Because the Women SHGs maintain a very high repayment rate, the banks and the formal financial institutions have now come up to provide the micro credit to the poor and the weaker sections of the society through the self Help groups.

The Women SHGs have maintained a very high repayment rate on the small loans which has paved the way for the uninterrupted flow of micro credit to the poor and their effective repayment. The table 4.13 below shows the repayment rate of the Women SHGs in percentage.

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Table No 4.13 Repayment rate on small loans of Women SHGs

Year Repayment rate (percentage) 2005-2006 94 2006-2007 95 2007-2008 97 2008-2009 97 2009-2010 99 2010-2011 98 2011-2012 98 2012-2013 99 Source : Primary Data

From the table no 4.13, it is concluded that the Women SHGs have maintained a very high repayment rate all throughout the years from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The repayment rate has been more than 90% for all the year while, it has been more than 95% from the year 2009-10 onwards. In the year 2012-2013, there has been a very high repayment rate of 99% which can be taken as the proof of the success of micro finance operations of the Women SHGs..

The repayment rate on the small loans of NHGs under the SHG initiative also has been shown to be very high. In SHG there is uninterrupted flow of small loans to the poor and weaker sections of the society and the effective repayment of the small loans through the NHGs. The table 4.14 shows the repayment rate on small loans through the monitoring mechanism of NHGs.

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Table No 4.14 Repayment rate on small loans under NHGs

Year Repayment rate (percentage) 2008-09 94.5 2009-10 95.8 2010-11 97.5 2011-12 97.8 2012-13 98.1 Source: Primary Data.

Table No 4.14 shows the Repayment rate on small loan is understood that there has been a very high repayment rate on small loans for the NHGs also. In 2005-2006, the repayment rate was 94.5% and it gradually increased to 98.1% in the year 2012-2013. The repayment rate on small loans by the Women SHGs (as shown in table4.13) and that of NHGs under SHG (as shown in table4.14) may be compared. In 2005- 2006, the repayment rate of Women SHGs was 97% while that of NHGs was94.5% and the repayment rate of Women SHGs has been found to be slightly higher than that of NHGs. However, in 2012-2013, the repayment rate on small loans by the Women SHGs has been found to be 99% while that of the NHGs has been found to be 98.1% and it may be noted that there has not been much difference in repayment rate of Women SHGs and the NHGs.

The repayment rate on the small loans by the Women SHGs under SHGs and the NHGs under the SHGs has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as shown below.

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Figure No 4.5 Shows been Repayment rates on small loans by Women SHGs and NHGs

REPAYMENT OF SMALL LOANS SHG AND NHG

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100

0 Year 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

SHG NHG

In the multiple bar charts above, the first bar represents the repayment rate on small loans by Women SHGs and the second bar represents the repayment rate on small loans by the NHGs. The data on the repayment rate by Women SHGs have been available from 2005-2006 to 2012-13 while that of NHGs have been available from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013. It may be seen from the charts that the repayment rate has been very high for both Women SHGs and the NHGs. It may also be seen that the repayment rate on small loans by Women SHGs under SHG has been slightly higher than that of NHGs.

The repayment rate on the small loans by the Women SHGs under SHG has been compared with that of five Co – operative banks in the peer made Taluk and that of Women SHGs has been found to be much higher than that of the co – operative banks has been shown in the table 4.15 below

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Table No 4.15 Repayment rate of five Co – operative banks

Repayment Co Average rate operative Year repayment (percentage) bank 3 4 5 rate 1 2 2008-09 60.1 57.2 56.2 57.4 56.3 57.44 2009-10 66.7 63.4 59.3 60.1 58.9 61.68 2010-11 61.2 59.2 57.4 59.8 57.4 59.00 2011-12 64.3 61.3 58.6 60.4 59.2 60.76 2012-13 61.1 58.6 56.7 57..2 57.1 58.14 Source : Published data from co-operative banks.

From the table no 4.15, it is under stood that the repayment rate of all the five Co –operative banks are much lower than that of Women SHGs. Moreover, apparently the repayment rates of these five cooperative banks are unequal among them. However, to understand whether the inequality in the repayment rates is statistically significant, the ANOVA single factor test has been applied to the data. For this purpose the null hypothesis has been formulated as; Ho: u1=u2=u3=u4=u5 The alternative hypothesis formulated has been; Hi: at least two mean values are unequal. The excel package of statistical tools have been used for the test and in the testing procedure the P value has been found as; P = 0.003539 Since the P value has been found to be very small, there is every reason to reject The null hypothesis, Ho: u1=u2=u3=u4=u5

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And accept the alternative hypothesis, Hi: at least two mean values are unequal.

Thus, it may be concluded that the repayment rates of all the Co- operative banks are not equal and there are some differences in the repayment rates among these banks themselves.

The repayment rate of Women SHGs under SHG has been, again compared with that of the cooperative banks by taking the average repayment rate of five co –operative banks. The table 4.16 below shows the repayment rate of Women SHGs and the average of the repayment rates of the five co –operative banks.

Table No 4.16 Repayment rate of Women SHGs and the average repayment rate of Five Co – operative banks Repayment rate Average Year (%) Women repayment rate (%) SHGs of Co- op 2008-09 97 57.44 2009-10 99 61.68 2010-11 98 59.00 2011-12 98 60.76 2012-13 99 58.14 Source: Data from the co – operative banks.

The repayment rate of Women SHGs under SHG has been very high as compared to the repayment rate of five co – operative banks taken on an average from 2008-2009 to the year 2012-2013. The repayment rate of Women SHGs stood at 97% in 2008-2009 while that of the Co – operative banks stood at 57.44%. In 2012-2013, the repayment rate on

117 small loans by the Women SHGs increased to 99% while that of the co – operative banks registered only a small increase and the repayment rate of co – operative banks increased to 58.14%. thus, it may be understood from the above table, that the Women SHGs under SHG have been very successful in organizing and implementing the micro finance operations effectively and that they could ensure the timely repayment of the small loans which has enabled rather free and uninterrupted flow of micro credit to the poor and the weaker sections of the society.

For a better comparison of the repayment rates of the Women SHGs under SHGs and the cooperative banks, the table no 4.16 has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as shown below.

Figure 4.6 Repayment rates- Women SHGs and Co – operative banks compared.

REPAYMENT RATE OF SHG Vs CO-OPERATIVE BANKS 120

97 99 98 98 99 100

80 61.68 60.76 57.44 59 58.14 60

0 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13

SHG CO-OPERATIVE

From the multiple bar charts no 4.6, It is understood that the

118 repayment rate of Women SHGs under SHG has been apparently very high as compared to that of the Co – operative banks. The Women SHGs have been, in general, able to organize and monitor the micro finance operations very effectively.

As understood from the data shown in table no 4.16, there has been much difference between the repayment rate of Women SHGs under SHG and the average of the repayments rates of five cooperative banks. The repayment rate of Women SHGs has been found to be apparently much higher than that of the average of the repayment rates of the five cooperative banks. However, to understand whether the difference in the repayment rates has been statistically significant, the above data have been tested using one tailed y test assuming unequal variances. In the process of the test, null hypothesis has been formulated as Ho: u1=u2 Where u1 is the mean of the repayment rate of Women SHGs And u2 is mean of the repayment rate of five co – operative banks. The alternative hypothesis has been formulated as Hi: u1=u2 The null hypothesis Ho: u1 = u2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis, the P value has been obtained as P = 4.52E – 09 which means that the P value is as low as P = 0.000000009 As the P value has been found to be very small, the null hypothesis, Ho: u1 = u2 has been well rejected and the alternative hypothesis, Hi: u1 > u2 has been accepted. It may be further understood from the test that the difference in the repayment rates are very significant statistically. It may be further concluded that the repayment rate of Women SHGs under SHG has been found very high as compared to that of the co – operative banks.

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Insurance Micro finance initiative has made a positive impact on the quality of life of millions of poor people by providing them greater access to micro credit, savings and insurance which would have otherwise remained not accessible by the poor. Access to insurance by the rural poor is a very important and notable achievement under micro finance. The Women SHGs have propagated and popularized the insurance schemes and also the advantages of various insurance schemes among the rural poor. The Women SHGs have been very successful in promoting the timely remittance of premium by the SHG member families and also in arranging easy settlement and the distribution of claims among their members.

In fact, insurance is a very important component of the micro finance initiative and it is a very important factor contributing to the economic and community development of any society. The Women SHGs under SHG have gone a long way in bringing the members of Women SHGs under insurance coverage which otherwise would have remained not accessible by the rural poor people. The members of Women SHGs have been brought under the insurance coverage by arranging insurance on their lives and properties. The table no 4.17

Below shows the number of SHG families brought under the insurance coverage, the premium remitted by them and also the claims distributed among the SHG families from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

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Table No 4.17 Number of SHG families insured

Number of Premium Premium Claim Claim Year families remitted remitted distributed distributed insured (Rs.lakhs) cumulated (Rs.lakhs) cumulated 2005-06 3387 1.82 1.82 1.85 1.85 2006-07 3516 5.06 6.88 4.50 6.35 2007-08 3033 2.87 9.75 5.40 11.75 2008-09 3361 4.84 14.59 5.66 17.41 2009-10 2867 4.12 18.71 6.34 23.75 2010-11 4052 5.88 24.59 4.96 28.71 2011-12 3274 5.33 29.92 5.80 34.51 2012-13 2642 5.62 35.54 6.48 40.99 Source: Primary data.

As may be seen in the table no 4.17, a total number of 3387 families were insured in 2005-2006, with the premium remitted equal to Rs.1.85 lakhs. The largest number of families insured was in the year 2006-2007 with 4052 families insured and the highest remittance of premium of Rs. 5.88 lakhs was registered in the year. The largest amount of claims equal to Rs.6.48 lakhs was distributed in the year 2012-13 on an average, there has been an increase in the premium remitted and insurance claims distributed among the SHG member families have been more than the insurance premium remitted by the member families.

The cumulated values in columns 4 and 6 of the table no 4.17 above have been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as shown below for an easy comparison.

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Figure No 4.7 Premium remitted and claims distributed among the SHG member families.

PREMIUM Vs CLAIM

0 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13

PREMIUM CLAIM

From the multiple bar chart 4.7 above, it may be understood that, on an average, the distribution of insurance claims has been more than that of the insurance premium remitted over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012- 2013. The claims distributed have been slightly higher than the insurance premium remitted for all the years except for 2006-2007 to 2007-2008. It may be understood that the Women SHGs under SHG have been able to distribute an amount of insurance claims among the SHG member families above to that amount they remit as insurance premium.

Apparently, the data relating to the insurance premium remitted and the claims distributed show that they are more or less equal. It means that the insurance claims distributed have been in tune with the insurance premium remitted. However, to understand the statistical significance of this equality, a two tailed t test was applied to the data. In the testing procedure, the null hypothesis formulated as 122

Ho: u1= u2 Where u1 = mean of the insurance premium remitted And u2 = mean of the insurance claim distributed. The alternative hypothesis formulated has been Hi: u1!= u2 The null hypothesis, Ho: u1= u2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis Hi: u1!= u2 In the testing procedure, the P value, has been obtained as the following:- P= 0.363896

The P value has been comparatively very high and there is no sufficient reason to reject the null hypothesis. Therefore the null hypothesis, Ho: u1=u2 may be accepted. It may concluded that the insurance premium remitted and the claims distributed have been more or less equal and the difference between the mean values of the two variables is not statistically significant. Moreover, it may be noted that the Women SHGs have been able to distribute the claims either equal to or a little more than the amount remitted by the SHG member families as premium.

MICRO ENTERPRISES DEVELOPMENT Progressive nations have shown a very strong relationship between levels of economic development and the levels of entrepreneurial activity (a positive correlation of 0.7). moreover, countries with active and dynamic entrepreneurial communities have shown a stronger economic performance. The rate of economic progress achieved by a country always depends on its rate of innovation depends upon the presence of entrepreneurial talent in the people.

Technological progress alone cannot lead to the economic

123 development of a country and only if an entrepreneur makes the economic application of technological progress, the economic development can be achieved because it is the entrepreneur who organizes production and utilizes capital, lab our and technology. The enterprises can be organized both at a large scale and at a small scale. The large scale organization of units needs a lot of capital investment and therefore very difficult to organize especially in the rural areas. The development of micro enterprises and entrepreneurship has gained the status of a national movement not only for the industrial development of the economically weaker sections of the society especially in the rural areas. Entrepreneurship is a purposeful activity in initiating, promoting and maintaining economic activities for the production and the distribution of wealth in the country. Individual, as an entrepreneur, is a critical factor in economic development and an integral part of socio economic transformation. The development of the socio economic conditions of the people and the development of the economy in any form is the outcome of the human activity and the entrepreneurship. This human activity basically comprises of three roles, as an organizer, a as worker and as a user of goods produced. The role of man as an organizer assumes great significance because man’s lab our efforts will largely remain unproductive if the skills and the resources provided by the nature are not fully transformed into efficient production units. Thus the development of indigenous entrepreneurship or enterprise is mandatory for any country committed to the socio economic development.

The economic and community development of the state of Tamilnadu is possible only with the development of income generating activities especially in the rural areas based on the utilization of skill,

124 knowledge and resources on a small scale and thus micro enterprises development becomes highly relevant in the context of the state, it is essential that the micro enterprises be promoted in both the rural and urban areas.it is appropriate to introduce income generating activities based on skills, knowledge and the resources and they should be linked with the existing livelihood activities of the people.

Micro enterprises development is not a stand -alone activity and therefore, emphasis should be given to both on developing business skills and also on providing the backward and forward and forward linkages. It is both cost effective and efficient to promote the farm sector micro enterprises because backward and forward linkages are locally available in this case. However, promotion of non -farm sector micro enterprises is comparatively difficult in terms of providing the market linkages because significant sales turnover is required to earn incomes equal to minimum wages or which helps the rural poor people to cross poverty line. The community based micro enterprises like coir rope making, coconut coir rope making, coconut leaf thatching, pickle manufacture, group leaf plate making, spices production, honey and food processing and also the agarhathi making have been the most desirable micro enterprises through which the poverty alleviation in the rural areas could he materialized. Here the product has been manufactured according to the local demand patterns and they are consumed in the same locality. These activities could be organized promoted effectively through Self help Groups.

The effective organization of Self Help Groups has been a highly significant instrument in the process of the micro enterprises development. An SHG is an informal association of 10-15 people, who have voluntarily

125 come together to enhance the member’s financial security through savings, micro credit and the micro enterprises development as the main focus and interests of the members and generation of awareness, motivation, leadership and training for the benefit of the entire society. Self Help Group is a homogeneous group of poor. women, users etc. This group is a voluntary one formed on the areas of common interest so that they can think, organize and operate for their developments.

In order to sustain the various community development activities, the leadership and membership training hacked by participatory management arc highly required by the Women SHGs. The Women SHGs can, at this stage, impart entrepreneurial training and arrange exposure visits to similar successful micro enterprise units. It will have a great impact on the quality of the products manufactured by the beneficiary members of Women SHGs.

The NGOs are groups of persons organized on the basis of voluntary membership without state control, for the furtherance of some common interests of the citizens. Since 1990. there has been a great deal of interest taken by the economists and the development thinkers on the voluntary sector and their possible role in development. The attention which these relatively small interventions in civil society has got. has been symptomatic of the complexity of the development problems, compulsions of political economy and the centrality of the concern of reaching out to the poor.

In India, after the independence, the country was declared ‘welfare state' and various people centered development welfare schemes and development works have been undertaken by the government at all levels.

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Recently, it was realized that the success of the above programmes relied heavily on the involvement of the people at the grass root level for whom such programmes have been organized. Therefore, the government has come up to organize the social welfare programmes as grant-in-aid programmes under the various ‘autonomous bodies'" set up by it and encouraged the NCIOs to undertake such social welfare programmes and projects.

The NGOs in the country were largely engaged in the traditional charity based activities up to the recent yean; but presently they have diverted their attention to the development of skill and entrepreneurship in the country, especially in the rural areas. The development of indigenous entrepreneurship is an imperative for a country which is committed to socio-economic development of the nation.' The NGOs have been able to promote the development of rural skill and entrepreneurship because of the human touch they have in their operations and also due to the contact they have with the people at the grass root level and organize activities according to the needs and requirements of the local people.

Generally, the NGOs supplement and assist the development programmes and activities organized by the government. However. there are many NGOs operating independently with their own programmes and activities in the various fields relating to entrepreneurship development and generation of self employment and income. NGOs have largely concentrated their efforts on micro enterprises development in the informal sector, especially, in the rural areas as it could be the biggest effort towards the economic and community development of any developing country.

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The various NCIOs engaged in the entrepreneurship development may be classified in to three, namely. Primary level NGOs. Intermediate NGOs and Grass root level NGOs. The Primary level NGOs are mobilizing their own resources, operating at the international level and taking up development activities by themselves or through the intermediate or the grass mot levels.'4

The intermediate NGOs procure funds from various development agencies and they do the works of imparting training and conducting workshops for professional workforce."5 Grass root level NGOs take up field actions by forming direct contact with the needy people. They are usually small and they may have funding problems also.

NAYE (National Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs ), WASME (World Assembly of Small and Medium Entrepreneurs), XISS (Xavier Institute of Social Studies) AWAKE. RUDSETI etc. arc some of the major NGOs working in the field of entrepreneurship development at the national level. In Tamilnadu. Women SHGs and Mitra Nekton, arc some major NGOs working in the field of entrepreneurship development.

The trainee specific activities of NGOs engaged in rural micro enterprises development can be classified under three sections a. Direct involvement in the stimulation of enterprise development by organizing Entrepreneurship Development Programmes (EDP) and skill development among target groups funded out of its own resources or sponsored by the governmental agencies or other private development agencies. b. Provision of counseling and consultation services in project preparation, the feasibility study and technical advice on purchase

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of plant and machinery and assistance to small enterprises in promotion, growth and expansion of the unit. c. Provision of market services and assistance by way of organizing exhibitions and trade fain;, assistance in securing finance by providing information on government schemes of self employment, subsidy, loan facilities etc. and the provision of technical expertise in training.

SHG has been actively engaged in the promotion and development of the entrepreneurship in the rural areas of Thiruvarur District since its establishment in 1980. The Society has been organizing various programmes under different schemes sponsored by the central and state governments and also other development agencies at the national and state levels. SHG has been organizing various entrepreneurship development programmes also out of its own funding.

SHGs has been directly involving in the stimulation of entrepreneurship by organizing and implementing the skill and entrepreneurship development programmes among the people in Thiruvarur Districtin general and in the Thiruvarur District in particular. The Society has been largely providing counseling and consultation services in project preparation, feasibility study and the technical advice on the organization of plant and machinery. Moreover. SHG has been providing training to the development workers and assistance relating to marketing of products, securing the necessary finance and the net working facilities.

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Under the Micro Enterprises Development, SHGs has been organizing lour categories of programmes regularly for the development of skill and entrepreneurship. They are x Skill training under Capacity Development Programme. x Home Nurse Training under Capacity Development Programme. x Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme under Entrepreneurship Development. x Enterprises Development Programme under Entrepreneurship Development.

Skill training under Capacity Development Programme has been conducted by SHG regularly from 2005-2006 onwards. The table no 4.18 shows the number of trainees who participated in the skill training from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No. 4.18 Number of Trainees in the Skill Training

Number of Year Trainees 2005-06 125 2006-07 160 2007-08 170 2008-09 160 2009-10 75 2010-11 210 2011-12 107 2012-13 85 Total 1092 Source : Primary Data

As may be understood from the table no 4.I8, a total of 1092 rural people have participated in the skill training organized by SHG from 2005-2006 to 2010-2011. In 2005-2006. the number of trainees who

130 participated has been 125 which decreased to 85 in 2012-2013. The largest number of trainees equal to 210 trainees have participated in the skill training under Capacity Development Programme in 2002-03. There has been some variations in the number of trainees in different years. The above table has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below.

Figure No 4.8 Number of Trainees under Skill Training

NUMBER OF TRAINEE 250

200

150

100

0 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

NUMBER OF TRAINEE

It may be understood from the simple bar chart shown above, there has been much variations in the number of trainees over the years. The largest number of 210 trainees have participated in the above programme in the year 2010-2011. However, in the year 2012-2013, only 85 trainees have participated in the skill training programme. On the whole there has been a declining trend in the number of participants in the skill training organized by SHG under Capacity development Programme.

The home Nurse Training under the Capacity Development Programme has been meant exclusively for the women trainees. The home

131 nurse training has been conducted for four years from 2005-2006 to 0212- 2013. The table no 4.19 below shows the number of participants in home nurse training under Capacity Development Programme from 2005-2006 to 0212-2013.

Table No 4.19 Number of participants in Home Nurse Training

Year Number of Trainees 2008-2009 35 2009-2010 40 2010-2011 43 2011-2012 30 Total 148 Source: Primary Data

As shown in the table no 4.19, a total of 148 women trainees have participated in the home nurse training organized by SHG under Capacity Development Programme from 2008-2009 to 2011-2012 The largest number of participants has been in the year 2010-2011 and 43 trainees have participated in the programme in the same year. The Home Nurse Training programme has not been conducted since 2007-2008 as the number of trainees decreased and it became an unattractive field of enterprise and more attractive alternative self employment opportunities have been opened up in the rural areas with the training in other different entrepreneurship and skill development programmes have been organized by SHG.

One of the most important programmes organized by SHG for the skill and Entrepreneurship development has been R E D P (Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme). R E D P was begun in 1999-

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00 and it aimed at skill and entrepreneurship development of the weaker sections of the population in the locality. The table no 4.20 below shows the number of trainees under R E D P from 2007-2008 to 2012-2013.

Table No 4.20 Number of participants in REDP

Year Number of Trainees 2006-2007 25 2007-2008 132 2008-2009 129 2009-2010 132 2010-2011 60 2011-2012 60 Total 538 Source : Primary Data.

As shown in table no 4.20, a total of 538 people have participated in R E D P from 2006-2007 to 2012-2012. The number of trainees has been 25 in 2006-2007 which increased to 132 in 2009-10. In 2008-2009. 129 people and in 2009-2010 132 people have participated in R E I) P. However, the number of trainees has fallen to60 in 2010-2011 and in 2011-2012. The table no 4.20 has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below.

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Figure No. 4.9 Number of Participants in REDP

NO OF TRAINEES 140

120

100

0 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012

NO OF TRAINEES

As shown in the simple bar chart above, the largest participation of 132 people has been registered in two year 2007-08 and 2009-10. However, in 2010-11 and 2011-2012, the number of participants decreased to 60. Majority of the programmes for the entrepreneurship development has been organized by SHG with the sponsorship and the funding from the national and state level development agencies. Another programme organized by SHG for the skill and entrepreneurship development has been the Enterprises Development Programme (EDP). This programme was started in the year 2006-07 and since then it has been conducted regularly. EDP has been organized by SHG mainly with the sponsorship and the funding from the different development agencies at the national and state levels. The table 4.21 below shows the number of participants in the EDP organized by SHG from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013.

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Table No 4.21 Number of Participants in EDP

Year Number of Participants 2008-2009 180 2009-2010 110 2010-2011 85 2011-2012 140 2012-2013 264 Total 779 Source : Primary Data.

It is understood from the table no 4.21, a total of 779 people have participated in EDP from2008-2009 to 2012-2013. In 2008-2009, the number of trainees has been 180 which decreased to 110 in 2009-2010 and to 85 in 2010-2011. However, it has increased to 140 in 2011- 2012and to 264 in 2012-2013.The participation in the Enterprises Development Programme has enabled the rural poor in starting micro enterprises units for generating self-employment and income. The table 4.21 above has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below for easy observation.

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Figure No. 4.10 Number of Participants in EDP

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS IN EDP

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

300 250 200 150 100 50 0 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

By examining the simple bar chart above, it may be seen that the largest number of trainees equal to 264 people have participated in EDP in the year 2012-13. The smallest number of participation of 85 people has been in the year 2010-11. EDP has been a training programme intended to promote the rural enterprises thereby increasing the opportunities for self employment and income generation.

The Index Wise Description Method has been used in the study to highlight the trend growth in the number of participation of the rural people in the various skill training and the entrepreneurship development programmes under Micro Enterprises Development organized by SHG in the Thiruvarur District. Accordingly, a definite weight has been given to each programme in the following way

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Skill Training :1092 / 2557 = 0.43 Home Nurse Training : 148/2557 = 0.06 Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme : 538/2557 = 0.21 Enterprises Development Programme :779/2557 = 0.30

Accordingly, the Index has been prepared for each year from 2005- 06 Lo 2012-2013 by multiplying the number of participants in each programme in each year with the respective weight points. Thus, in 2005- 06. the number of participants in the first programme multiplied by its weight, the second programme multiplied by its weight, the third programme multiplied by its weight and the fourth programme multiplied by its weight are added to get the Index for the year 1997-98. Accordingly,1997-98 Index = ( 125 x 0.43 + 35 x 0.06 + 0 x 0.21 + 0 x 0.30 ) x 100.

Thus, Indices for the various years have been prepared and expressed in relation to the base year 2005-06 Index = 100. The table 4.22 below shows the Indices for the various years from 2005-06 lo 2012-2013.

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Table No 4.22 Year wise Indices of People Participation in MEDP

Year Actual Value Index for the Year 2005-06 55.85 100.0000 2006-07 71.20 127.4843 2007-08 80.93 144.9059 2008-09 152.32 272.7305 2009-10 92.34 165.3357 2010-11 143.52 256.9240 2011-12 100.61 180.1432 2012-13 128.35 229.8119 Source : Primary Data

Table no 4.22 shows the year wise indices of people participation in MEDP, 2005-2006 has been adopted as the base year and the actual value 55.85 of the year 2005-2006 has been taken as 100. The Index for 2006- 2007 has been 127.4843 and only a normal increase only about 27 points has occurred in the Index. REDP and EDP have not been undertaken in 2006-2007 and the increase in the Index has been due to the rise in the number of trainees in skill training from 125 to 160 and in Home Nurse training from 35 to 40. In 2007-2008. the Index rose to 144.9059 and it has been due to a small increase in the number of trainees in skill training from 160 to 170 and in Home Nurse training from 40 to 43 and also due to the fact that REDP has been started with 25 persons participating in the programme. There has been a jump in the Index to 272.7305 in 2008-09. The reason for this jump in the Index has been due to a large increase in the number of trainees from 25 to 132 in REDP in 2009-l0 and also that EDP has been started in the same year in which 180 trainees have participated even though there has been a small decrease in the number of trainees in skill training from 170 to 160 In Home Nurse training from 43 to 40.

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In 2009-10, the Index has decreased to 165.3357 and it has been due to the decrease in the number of trainees in skill training from 160 to 75, in REDP from 132 to 129 and in EDP from 180 to 110. Moreover, Home Nurse training has been stopped since 2008-2009. In 2011-2012, the Index again jumped to 256.9740 and it has been due to the large increase in the number of trainees in skill training from 75 to 210, small increase in the number of trainees in REDP from 129 to 132 even though in EDP the number of trainees decreased from 110 to 85.

In 2012-2013, again the Index decreased to 180.1432 and it has been due to a large decrease in the number of trainees in skill training from 210 to 107 and in REDP from 132 to 60, even though in EDP, the number of trainees increased from 85 to 140. In 2012-2013, the Index increased to 229.8119 and it has been due to a large increase in the number of trainees in EDP from 140 to 264. However, the number of trainees in skill training decreased from 107 to 85 and in REDP it remained unchanged at 60.

It is understood from the Index Wise Description above, on the whole, there has been an increase, in general, in the number of trainees in the different skill and entrepreneurship development programmes organized by SHG from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. It may conclude that SHGs has been able to promote the skill and entrepreneurship development programmes in the rural areas in a big way and contributed to the Micro Enterprises Development of the locality.

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HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Human resources development is considered to be an emerging concept and it obviously leads to the economic growth and progress of a nation. Human resource development as a concept has worked behind the development of various systems which deal with the people, their problems and the organizational dynamics. Development of human resources is a specialized function in the development oriented programmes and it is one of the fundamental operative functions of personnel administration. It is very much true that productivity is associated markedly with the nature of human resources and their total environment consisting of the interrelated, interdependent and inter acting economic and non economic factors. Therefore the role and significance of human resources have to be examined from two view points, namely, economic and non economic. It can be seen that a large number of problems in the business and organizational settings are of the human and social character compared to that of physical, technological and economic character.

From the economic point of view, the human resources have assumed great significance at the national level, the enterprise level and at the individual level. Human resources have been viewed as a form of capital and as a product of investment whereby production is acquired; human resources account for a large part of the national output and there is wide scope for enhancing productivity through their proper development. Only with an effective streamlining and strengthening the system of training and human resources development, the manufacturing sector can make big contribution to the socio economic transformation in the country, especially in the era of globalization.

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It is the development of human resources that makes the great differences among the various countries in the matter of development and technology is only the secondary factor leading to such differences. It is because, technological improvements, business strategic and the quality concerns will have to be implemented only through the human beings. So it is the people who make the difference and it has been shown by the structural adjustments undertaken by the different countries in the last twenty five yean;. Countries, where structural adjustments were accompanied by the right investments on developing the people, have emerged successful. Continuous up gradation should take place in the work methods, work norms, technical and managerial skills etc. and these can be made passable only with the sufficient investment on the development of human resources and training.

Human resources are the life of knowledge industry. Due to ever growing demand for manpower, the human resources department in any organization faces never ending pressure to attract, retain and motivate the best in the industry. Every industrial organization is characterized by the presence and involvement of various categories of human resources, production processes and purpose or targets. It is the human resources that shape the organization and it is the driving force behind each and every operation and activity.

The role of human resources in any organization is critical in the sense that the different people have different perceptions and all of them have to be properly managed and developed from the organization’s success point of view. The success of any organization in the long run very depends on the quality of its human resources.

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The study of human resources development is vital in India from the point of view of economic welfare. Our country has the second largest pool of human resources in the world and India has to utilities, its human potential most effectively for which human resources development is very essential. 11uman resources development is an essential element in the economic development because of the deteriorating social conditions, very high competition and rapid technological advancements. It highlights the role of human resources in development and focuses on division of labor and specialization, capacity development and skill development. It enables the people (belonging to weaker sections) to lead a better life and to drive to modernization.

There is wide spread unemployment and under employment in the rural areas of the country even after the Green and White Revolutions. Though agriculture is providing job to millions in our country, it alone cannot sustain the growing population in the villages. Therefore, the non farm sector has to be strengthened through the proper and effective development of human resources by increasing the quality of employment and income, providing proper skill to labor and making larger public investments in the rural areas of the country.

In Tamilnadu, the development of the human resources is the key factor in the attainment of economic and community development of the state. There is the shortage of cultivable land in the state which limits the absorption of the growing population in the agricultural sector. The proper development of the non farm sector is the only remedy for solving the problem of wide unemployment for which the programmes for skill training and human resources development should be implemented in the state.

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Only with the proper education, training . and skill development, the human resources can he made effective and competitive in enterprises and activities generating employment and income. The various governmental agencies have been organizing the programmes and activities for the development of human resources in the state and such efforts have been only a partial success. For the effective development of skill and human resources in the state, there should be the involvement of the voluntary organizations and NGOs which have been actively engaged in the efforts towards the organization of the poor and weaker sections of the society.

SHGs has been actively engaged in the development of skill and the human resources in Thiruvarur District, especially, in the Thiruvarur District by way of organizing and implementing various programmes and activities. SHG has been mainly organizing two categories of programmes, namely, the Awareness Generation Programme and Training Programme, intending to bring about the human resources development especially in the Thiruvarur District.

The Awareness Generation Programme has been organized intending to create awareness among the people in the locality with respect to the need for human resources development, the methods that may be adopted for it and also with respect to the structural aspects of various human resources development programmes. SHG could ensure a very large participation of people of the locality in the Awareness Generation Programmes by which awareness could be generated among the rural ptx:>r with respect to the various self employment schemes introduced by the government and the ways in which they could have an access to the government funds.

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The table 4.23 below shows the number of participants in the Awareness Generation Programme from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No 4.23 Number of Participants in the Awareness Generation Programme Number of Year Participants 2008-2009 180 2009-2010 110 2010-2011 85 2011-2012 140 2012-2013 264 Total 779 Source: Primary Data.

As may be understood from the table no 4.23, there has been a substantial increase in the number of participants in Awareness Generation Programme organized by SHG. A total number of 779 people have been participated in the Awareness Generation Programme from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013. In every year there has been an increase in the number of participants.

SHG has been organizing training programmes for the development of human resources regularly from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The training programmes intended to increase the quality and skill of the human resources of the locality which contributed to a rise in the employment and income levels. There has been the effective participation in the training programmes by the people of the locality. The table no 4.24 below shows the number of participants in the training programmes organized by SHG from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. 144

Table No 4.24 The Number of Participants in the Training Programmes

Year Number of Participants 2008-2009 180 2009-2010 110 2010-2011 85 2011-2012 140 2012-2013 264 Total 779 Source : Primary Data.

As shown in the table no 4.24 , a total number of 779 people have participated in the Training Programmes organized by SHG from 2008- 2009 to 2012-2013. There has been a more or less regular increase in the number of participants in the programmes each year. In 2007-08, 215 people have participated in die above Training Programmes which increased to 265 in 2006-2007. to 310 in 2008-09, and to 365 in the year 2009-10. There has been a small decrease in the number of participants in 2001-02 to 325.However, in 2002-03, the number of participants increased to 450, to 650 in the year 2005-06 and to 710 in 2012-2013. The table 4.24 has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below for a better understanding of the trend growth in the number of participants in the Training Programmes.

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Figure No.4.11 Number of Participants in the Training Programmes under HRD

300

250

200

150

100

0 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

As may he understood from the simple bar chart above, there has been more or less a marked increase in the number of participants in the Training Programmes from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The number of participants increased from 215 in 2005 - 06 to 710 in 2012-2013. Mc*;t of the training programmes have been organized by SHG with the sponsorship and funding from the agencies working in the field of Human Resources Development at the national and state levels.

It may be concluded that the intervention on the part of SHG has been successful, to a very large extent, in the development of human resources of the locality. The Society has been able to ensure the effective participation of the people in the local area in the Awareness Generation Programme and the Training Programmes organized by it under human resources development.

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HOUSING AND SOCIAL WELFARE The economic and community development of the country is possible only through the comprehensive rural development. The comprehensive package of shelter, health care and the other economic support programmes are highly required for the up lift of the common masses, especially in the rural areas and for the materialization of social welfare. Rural development may be defined as the structural change in socio-economic situations to achieve improved living standards of low income population residing in thermal areas and making the process of economic development self sustaining.lt is a process which includes economic development with the close integration among the various sections and sectors.

The process of rural economic development has been slow throughout: the country due to the lack of availability of rural infrastructure and the other amenities of life in sufficient quantities. The rural infrastructure is a very important component of thermal development and also it leads to the success of any sustainable poverty alleviation programme in the rural areas. By promoting productivity, increasing agricultural income and providing adequate gainful employment, rural infrastructure improves the quality of life in the rural economy. Rural infrastructure consists of irrigation in the rural areas, thermal roads, housing, rural water supply, electrification, rural telecommunications, rural education, rural sanitation etc. and it leads to improved quality of life and increased social welfare in ihc rural areas.

Rural infrastructure can be of three types, namely, utility infrastructure- consisting of housing, the water supply, sewage, drainages, low cost sanitation etc., The social infrastructure consisting of health,

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education etc. and the commercial infrastructure consisting of shopping centers, markets etc. The implementation and the development of rural infrastructure projects help create value for the rural society. The involvement of the coaxial community and the rural NGOs is essential for the successful implementation of rural infrastructure projects.

Development of housing facilities with high quality water-supply is of the biggest priority in the rural areas. Moreover, there should be the extension of services in the social sectors like education, health and sanitation which will lead to the enhanced social welfare in these areas. In the health sector, health care should become accessible and affordable while services should he adequate, timely and cost effective.

Various voluntary agencies and NGOs have been involving themselves in providing social services and have evolved low cost delivery system, particularly in the rural areas. NGOs in general have been very successful in organizing and empowering the people in the rural areas towards the development of housing and expansion of social sector activities.

The role of NGOs in the social sector development and the social welfare activities has been gaining prominence, especially when the governmental agencies at different levels have a tendency to withdraw from providing social services and promote the general welfare of the society.

In Tamilnadu, there has been a large number of NGOs actively engaged in providing social services to the weaker sections of the society and in promoting general welfare of the common masses. Their activities arc confined to housing, sanitation, health care, provision of drinking

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water, water supply schemes, financial assistance and aid to poor children etc. NGOs have been very successful in organizing these activities and promoting the welfare of the common masses as they are voluntary in nature, they have pixel touch with the people at the grass mot level and they can reach out to the poor very easily.

SHGs has been undertaking development of housing facilities and social welfare activities extensively among the tribal people and other weaker sections of the society in Thiruvarur District, especially in the Thiruvarur District, ever since its establishment in 1980. The social welfare activities of SHG consisted mainly of providing housing and shelter to the tribal people, lo the poor and the weaker sections in the locality, promoting sanitary facilities through the construction of sanitary projects, constructing; tanks for rain water harvesting, providing drinking water to water scarce areas by undertaking water supply schemes, providing financial assistance to the poor families and also providing the financial support and to monthly scholarships to poor children for education.

SHGs has been actively engaged in providing the sanitation facilities for the poor people in the locality. The promotion of sanitation in the rural areas is quite indispensable in enhancing the health condition and the quality of human resources in the areas. The Society has undertaken 1504 sanitary projects for the poor people of the Thiruvarur District from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The table 4.25 below shows the number of sanitary projects undertaken by SHGs in each year from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

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Table No 4.25 Number of Sanitary Projects undertaken by SHG

Year Number of Houses 2005-06 197 2006-07 355 2007-08 18 2008-09 139 2009-10 427 2010-11 153 2011-12 12 2012-13 25 Total 1326 Source: Primary Data

As shown in the table no 4.25, in. 210 sanitary projects have been undertaken by SHG which increased to 325 in 2006-2007 and to 350 in 2008-2009. Since 2009-2010, there has been a decrease in the number of sanitary projects undertaken each year. In 2010-2011.158 sanitary projects have been undertaken, 176 projects in 2011-2012, 165 projects in 2012- 2013, , and 35 projects have been undertaken by SHG in the year 2012- 2013. In the provision of housing and shelter to the poor people also the role of SHG has been significant. The Society has been actively engaged in the construction of houses for the trial people and the weaker sections of the society. SHG has constructed 1326 houses for the poor people in the locality from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The table 4.26 below shows the number of houses constructed by the Society each year.

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Table No 4.26 Number of Houses Constructed by SHG

Year Number of Houses 2005-06 197 2006-07 355 2007-08 18 2008-09 139 2009-10 427 2010-11 153 2011-12 12 2012-13 25 Total 1326 Source: Primary Data

As may be seen from the table no 4.26, SHG has constructed 197 houses for the poor in 2005-2006, 355 houses in 2006-2007. 18 in 2007- 2008. 139 houses in 2008-2009, 427 house in 2009-2010,153 houses in 2010-2011,12 houses in 2011-2012 and 25 houses in 2012-2013. The largest number of houses constructed in a year has been 427 houses in 2007-2008. The number of houses constructed in the initial years has been rather high and later the number of houses constructed decreased. It has been due to the fact that with the intervention on the part of SHG, the number of people in the locality without the shelter decreased.

Another area of SHG intervention in the Thiruvarur District was rain water harvesting. SHG has extensively promoted the construction of water tanks for storing rain water under the scheme of rain water harvesting. Thiruvarur District has been a richly rain fed area and the promotion of rain water harvesting would solve the problem of water scarcity in the locality.

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The table 4.27 below shows the number of the number of water tanks for the storage of rain water from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 under the scheme of rain water harvesting.

Table No 4.27 Number Water Tanks Constructed by SHG

Number of water Year tanks 2005-06 120 2006-07 280 2007-08 325 2008-09 245 2009-10 183 2010-11 354 2011-12 352 2012-13 654 Total 2513 Source: Primary Data

It is understood from the table no 4.27. SHGs has constructed a total of 2513 water tanks for storing rain water under rain water harvesting from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. 120 water tanks have been constructed in 2005-2006 which increased to 654 tanks in 2012-2013. On the whole, there has been a more or less increasing trend in the number of water tanks constructed by SHGs every year.

The scarcity of drinking water has been a very severe problem in many of the villages in Tamilnadu. SHG has undertaken several drinking water schemes in Thiruvarur District, especially in the Thiruvarur District.

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The table 4.28 below shows the number of water tanks constructed by SHG for the supply of drinking water, more particularly in the Thiruvarur District from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No. 4.28 Number of Drinking Water Schemes under taken by SHG Number of Drinking Year Water Schemes 2005-06 182 2006-07 75 2007-08 36 2008-09 86 2009-10 125 2010-11 164 2011-12 38 2012-13 24 Total 730 Source: Primary Data

As shown in the table no 4.28. SHGs has undertaken a total of 730 drinking water schemes in the locality from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. 182 schemes have been undertaken in 2005-2006,75 schemes in 2006-2007, 36 schemes in 2007-2008, 86 schemes in 2008-2009, 125 schemes in 2009-2010 164 schemes in 2010-2011, 38 schemes in 2011-2012-and 24 schemes have been undertaken by SHG in 2012-2013.

SHGs has been actively engaged in promoting the welfare of the people in the Thiruvarur District by undertaking a lot of social welfare programmes. The Society has organized and implemented a programme

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called Monthly Aid Programme under which financial assistance to the poor people and financial support and scholarships to the poor school going children have been given. The table 4.29 below shows the number of people who became the beneficiaries of the Monthly Aid Programme undertaken by SHGs from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No 4.29 Number of Beneficiaries of Monthly Aid Programme Year Number of Beneficiaries 2005-06 954 2006-07 985 2007-08 1159 2008-09 1250 2009-10 1352 2010-11 1350 2011-12 1254 2012-13 985 Total 9289 Source : Primary Data

From the table no 4.29 it may he understood that a total of 9289 people have become the beneficiaries of the Monthly Aid Programme of SHG from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. In 2005-2006, 954 people have received the assistance from SHG and the number increased rather every year. The largest number of people benefiting from the programme has been in the year 2009-2010, with 1352 people receiving the assistance from SHGs. The Monthly Aid Programme of SHG has contributed much to the welfare of the people in the locality.

In order to understand the economic significance of the different social services activities undertaken by SHG, the social service activities

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of SHGs have been compared with the social service activities undertaken by seven Grama Panchayats in the Thiruvarur District. Tor the comparison, the average of the number of projects and activities undertaken by the Grama Panchayats each year has been compared to similar activities and programmes undertaken by SHG each year. For the Grama Panchayats the data have been available only for five years from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013.

The table no. 4.30 below shows the number of sanitary projects undertaken by SHGs and the average of the number of sanitary projects undertaken by Grama Panchayats from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013.

Table No 4.30 Number of Projects undertaken by SHG and Grama Panchayats Number of sanitary Number of sanitary Year projects by projects by SHG Panchayats 2005-06 55.85 100.0000 2006-07 71.20 127.4843 2007-08 80.93 144.9059 2008-09 152.32 272.7305 2009-10 92.34 165.3357 2010-11 143.52 256.9240 2011-12 100.61 180.1432 2012-13 128.35 229.8119 Source : Primary Data

From the table no 4.30, it may he understood that the total number of sanitary projects undertaken by SHG from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 has

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been 1504 while the total number of sanitary projects undertaken by an average Grama Panchayat from the year 2009-2010 has been 583. Again, the total number of sanitary projects undertaken by SHG has been 619 from 2010-2011 to 2012-2013 while that of the Grama Panchayat has been 583. The comparison of the figures in the data show that there has been a substantial contribution from SHG in promoting the sanitation facilities in the locality. The table no. 4.30 has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart for a better comparison of data as shown below.

Figure No. 4.12 Number of sanitary projects by SHG and grama panchayats

COMPARISON OF SANITARY PROJECTS 300

250

200

150

100

0 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013

NO OF SANITARY PROJECTS BY SHG NO OF SANITARY PROJECTS BY PANCHAYATS

As may be understood from the multiple bar chart above, SHG has constructed a very large number of sanitary projects in the initial years even though SHG intervention has declined in this regard in the later years. The number of sanitary projects constructed by Grama Panchayats has been less in the initial years but the number has shown an increasing tendency in the later years. However, the total number of sanitary projects

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undertaken by SHGs has been very high from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The number of sanitation projects undertaken by SHG has been higher than that of the Grama Panchayat even from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. Thus, SHGs as an NGO, has proved to be very effective in promoting the development of sanitation facilities in the locality.

In the promotion of housing and shelter in the locality. SHG has been contributing in a big way compared to that of Grama Panchayats. The table no. 4.31 below shows the contribution of SHG and Grama Panchayats in the Thiruvarur District.

Table No 4.31 Number of Houses Constructed by SHG and Grama Panchayat

Houses Houses constructed Grama Year SHG Panchayat 2005-06 197 Nil 2006-07 355 Nil 2007-08 18 Nil 2008-09 139 66 2009-10 427 71 2010-11 153 58 2011-12 12 73 2012-13 25 76 Total 1326 344 Source : Primary Data and Grama Panchayat Data.

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As understood from the table no 4.31. SHGs has constructed a total of 1326 houses for the poor in the locality from 2005-2006 to2012-2013. The figures in the data from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 shows that the Society has constructed 756 houses for the poor in the locality. On an average, a drama Panchayat in the Thiruvarur District could construct 344 houses for the poor and weaker sections of the society. The contribution of SHG has been more than double in this regard as compared to that of the drama Panchayat from the year 205-2006 to 2012-2013. The number of houses constructed by SHGs from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 has been much higher than that of the drama Panchayat and SHGs has been able to construct 1326 houses for the poor people in the locality during this period. The table no. 4.31 above has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as given below for a better comparison of the data.

Figure No. 4.13 Number of Houses Constructed by SHG and grama Panchayat

HOUSE CONSTRUCTED BY SHGs AND PANCHAYAT 450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2013-2014

HOUSE CONSTRUCTED BY SHG HOUSES CONSTRUCTED BY GRAMA PANCHAYAT

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It may be well understood from the multiple bar chart above that the contribution of SHGs has been substantial in providing housing and shelter to the poor in the locality. SHGs has constructed 427 houses in 2009-10 and it has been the largest number of houses constructed in any year. In the initial years the number of houses constructed has been very high but in later years the number decreased. However, as compared with the contribution of drama Panchayats, the contribution of SHG has been highly significant. It may be concluded that the intervention of SHG has been strongly felt in the development of housing and shelter for the poor in the Thiruvarur District, especially in the Thiruvarur District.

SHG has undertaken several drinking water schemes to supply drinking water to the people in the water scarce area in the locality. In this Held the prominence of SHG has been strongly felt as compared to that of Grama Panchayats. The table 4.32 below shows the contribution of SHG and an average Grama Panchayat in the Thiruvarur District.

Table No 4.32 Number of Drinking Water Projects undertaken by SHG and Grama Panchayat

Drinking water Drinking water projects Year projects By SHG By drama Panchayat 2008-2009 86 6 2009-2010 125 7 2010-2011 16 5 2011-2012 38 5 2012-2013 24 8 Total 437 31 Source : Primary and Grama Panchayat Data.

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As may be understood from the table no 4.32, the contribution of SHG in undertaking drinking water schemes has been significant and very high as compared to an average Grama Panchayat in the Thiruvarur District. SHG has undertaken 437 drinking water schemes from the year 2000-01 to 2012-2013 while an average Grama Panchayat in the locality could undertake only about 31 drinking water schemes. Thus it may well be concluded that SHG has been very successful in augmenting the supply of drinking water to the people in the water scarce areas.

SHGs has been providing financial support and assistance to the poor people including women and children in the Thiruvarur District, especially in the Thiruvarur District. Table 4.33 below shows the number of beneficiaries of monthly aid programme of SHGs and that of a Grama Panchayat.

Table No 4.33 Number of Beneficiaries of Aid Programmes under SHGs and Grama Panchayat

Number of beneficiaries Number of beneficiaries Year SHG drama Panchayat 2008-2009 1250 98 2009-2010 1352 93 2010-2011 1350 103 2011-2012 1254 103 2012-2013 985 121 Total 6191 518

Source : Primary and Grama Panchayat Data.

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It may be understood from the table no 4.33 that the number of beneficiaries of the monthly aid programme by SHGs has been 6191 from 2008-2009- to 2012-2013 while that of the Grama Panchayat has been 518 during the same year. It has been because, as an NGO, SHGs has more touch with the people of the locality at the grass roots level and could understand the needs and requirements of the poor people and has given the financial support and assistance to them as and when required. SHGs has been giving financial assistance to the poor people including women and children and provided scholarships and other assistance to the school going children belonging to the weaker sections of the society.

Thus, it may be concluded that the interventions of SHGs has contributed in a big way in enhancing the housing facilities and other services to the poor and weaker sections of the society and also in increasing their welfare. SHG has organized a lot of programmes and undertook a lot of projects intending to increase the social welfare of the people in the locality.

It may be summarized that the community development interventions of SHG through the SHGs have led to the uplift of the poor and weaker sections of depopulation in the Thiruvarur District. SHG has promoted a large network of Women SHGs which carried out the micro finance and micro credit operations in the locality. There has been a steady expansion of the SHGs network under SHG which led to the effective mobilization of small savings of the poor people, disbursement of small loans among the poor both out of the savings mobilized by the Women SHGs and also by way of availing bank link loans through SHG bank linkage. There has been 100 percent bank linkage for the Women SHGs under SHGs. The Women SHGs could ensure regular repayment of

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small loans by the members and maintained a very high repayment rate compared to that of the cooperative banks and NHGs under the Bank. Further, the SHGs members could be largely brought under insurance coverage thereby ensuring the social security to the SHG members. It has been found in the study that the skills under SHG could organize the micro finance operations in the Thiruvarur District more effectively compared to the NHGs under the Government of Tamilnadu and the service cooperative banks operating in the Thiruvarur District.

Besides, the development intervention of SHG in the locality through a lot of skill training, capacity development and the awareness generation programmes. Could promote the development of micro enterprises thereby providing self employment and income generation activities and the weaker sections of the population in the locality. Again. SHG has undertaken various activities promoting the economic and social welfare of the poor and weaker sections of the population in the locality through the construction of houses, sanitation projects, water supply schemes, rain water harvesting projects and direct monthly aid programmes. It has been found in the study that SHG has been able to organize the social welfare activities in more effective manner compared to the Grama Panchayats in the Thiruvarur District and it has been due to the fact that SHGs as a local NGO, could be in touch with the people at the grass roots level thereby identifying the poorest and the most needy sections of the population in the locality.

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CHAPTER - V SHGs AND WOMEN DEVELOPMENT

Because of various historic and socio-cultural reasons, women are the most vulnerable section of our society. The various macro indicators related to education, health, employment, participation and decision making, point out the fact that women arc- having a miserable and adverse status compared to men. In India, women constitute a sizeable segment of the poverty struck population. Though the government has continued to allocate resources for the empowerment of women, it has become strikingly clear that political and social forces, that resist women’s rights in the name of religious, cultural or ethnic traditions, have contributed to the marginalization and the oppression of women.

Women empowerment is considered to be a key strategy for addressing issues of poverty alleviation in the country. Under trickledown theory in planning process. It was expected that women will equally benefit along with men.’ Access to the financial services and the subsequent transfer of the financial resources to poor women enable to make them the economic agents of change. Women who become economically self reliant, contribute directly to the well being of their families, play a more active role in decision making and are able to confront systematic gender inequalities. Even though the development and empowerment of women has been a priority in our successive Plans and several of our public expenditure programmes have been directed to this objective, it remained more or less unrealized. Still women lace gender specific barriers to access the public services and public expenditure.

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The participatory approach to development has emerged as a vital issue in development policies and programmes for women. The Self Help Groups (Women SHGs) are considered as one of the most significant tools to adopt participatory approach for the economic empowerment of women. In India, experience has shown that women SHGs arc very successful in generating thrift based savings and they are good pay masters in the sphere of repayment of micro credit loans. The effective organization of Self Help Groups (Women SHGs) is a significant instrument in the process of empowerment. Therefore micro credit through Women SHGs has been viewed as the most potential strategy for women empowerment. Access to credit has long been considered a major poverty alleviation strategy in India. Although, the various credit programmes have been introduced in the country, their impact has proved to be ineffective due to the lack of involvement by the people at any stage of implementation.

Such programmes can be successfully organized and implemented for eradicating the poverty especially in the rural areas and generating gainful employment and income, if they are organized with the involvement and the participation of the people, especially women through community based organizations and NGOs. It is in this context that the expansion of micro credit and micro finance through the Women SHGs become strategic for poverty alleviation and women empowerment. The empowerment and the participation of women especially in the rural areas are highly essential for the poverty eradication, economic development and nation building.

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The government has formulated policies and allocated resources for the empowerment of Women but a lot of social and political forces have worked heavily in the process of marginalization and the oppression of women in the sexual and economic fields. One important reason for this is the lack of economic independence for women. The women development basically depends on the economic status of women and what is important for women development is empowering them economically. The planners and policy makers in the country have searched for viable alternatives for it and it has been observed that the participatory approach to development should be the key strategy in the policies and programmes for women development and empowerment.

Women SHGs are the most suitable organized set up to disburse micro credit to thermal women and encourage them in micro enterprises development. Women SHGs are basically community based organizations of women into small groups at the grass roots level and the implementation of poverty eradication programmes through such groups provide the maximum employment opportunities to women of high risk families by way of forming women managed micro enterprise units, provide medical care with the help of trained community health volunteers, organizing the formal thrift and credit societies to meet the consumption needs and to implement income generating activities and the provision of improved environmental sanitation facilities and safe drinking water schemes. Women SHGs are organizing participatory and women centered programmes for poverty eradication in the country.

Women SHGs and micro credit are the strategic solutions to speed up the socio economic development of women especially in the rural areas. They are the most significant tools to adopt the participatory

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approach for the economic empowerment of women and thus improve the life of women on various social components. The basic aim of on SHG is that it acts as the forum for members to provide space and support to each other. An SHGs is a group of people that meets regularly to discuss issues of interest to them and to arrive at solutions of the commonly experienced problems. Self Help Group is a homogenous group of the poor, women, users etc. This group is a voluntary one formed on areas of common interest so that they can think, organize and operate for their development. Women SHGs function on the basis of co-operative principles and provide a forum for members to extend support to each other.

The Self Help Groups are largely promoted by various agencies like NGOs, formal financial and social institutions and also by the government. Among such initiatives, those undertaken by the NGOs are of high relevance in poverty eradication, employment generation and community development because they are highly successful in organizing the involvement and participation of the people and of community based organizations at the grass roots level. Moreover, there was rather a proliferation of NGOs in the country working in the area of development especially community development, intending to bring about the uplift of the poor and weaker sections of the society at large.

The NGOs and private institutions have come up largely to organize and promote Women SHGs, particularly women Women SHGs with the objective of poverty alleviation and women empowerment. Women SHGs could be a primary coaxial of poverty alleviation and women empowerment. SHG is a small group where some individuals come together with a degree of self sufficiency with the intention of finding a solution to common problems such as livelihood generation,

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watershed management and medical issues. They are small economically homogenous and affinity groups of rural or urban poor voluntarily formed to save and contribute to a common fund to be lent to its members as per group decision and for working together in the socio economic uplift of their families and communities. The SHG’s is a leading NGO working in the area of women empowerment and development in Thiruvarur District intending to bring about uplift in the economic and social status of women and contributing to the economic and community development of the state of Tamilnadu.

SHG’s has promoted the development and empowerment of women primarily throughThiruvarur District. The present type of Women SHGs working under SHG was started from 2005-2013 onwards. Nearly 80% of the Women SHGs promoted by SHG arc women SHGs. Actually, since its establishment in 1980. SHG started promoting women development and empowerment in the Thiruvarur District through various groups and arrangements like village neighbor groups, women groups, credit unions and Mahilasamajams.

In the year1980 a totally charity based women development programme of village neighbor groups was started. Charity was the only motto of such neighbor groups and they continued functioning dell 1982 — 83. In 1982 - 83, credit unions were established with the objective of promoting thrift along with charity among the members. Later in 1985.

Promoted by SHG and these groups were extensively working for the skill development: and training of women until 2012-2013. From 2012-2013 onwards the SHG movement became very strong and a large number of Women SHGs were promoted by SHG throughout the Thiruvarur District which took up comprehensive women development

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programmes among the members including savings, credit, insurance, skill development, micro enterprises development and human resources development. At present, nearly 1346 women SHGs arc working under SHG which take up different activities relating to the comprehensive development and empowerment of women in the different parts of Thiruvarur district.

In 2005-2006, ‘SSI course, a skill development programme was conducted By SHG for the skill development and training of members of Mahilasamajams and Women SHGs. Under this programme skill training was given to 19 hatches of girl students and each hatch consisted of 20 girls. Out of the 280 girl students trained. 110 girls i.e. 40%, were placed in micro enterprises, self employment and other employments. Again. Rastriya Mahila Khosh, a Government of India sponsored programme, was undertaken by SHGs in order to promote rural credit and self employment of rural women. Rastriya Mahila Khosh ( RMK ) scheme covered 36 village communities in Thiruvarur District and an amount of Rs. 40 lakhs was spent under it.

In 2007-2008, various income generation programmes and enterprises were promoted by SHG mobilizing the government schemes. The enterprises promoted were garment making, food processing, floriculture and milk products and they were with the assistance from the villages and block Panchayat. A total of 93 women participated in the Capacity Development Programme under skill training by SHG and 32 out of them were placed in micro enterprises and self employment. Again, 35 women were given Home Nursing training. A lot of other programmes were also undertaken by SHG like

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x Participation in Agro - forestry programme x Establishment: of 1500 vermin - compost units by women groups.

The table no.5.1 below describes the various training programmes organized by SHGs in the year 2003 - 04 and the number of trainees in each programme.

Table No 5.1 Training programme 2012 -13

Number of Name of the Training Programme Trainees Electrical embroidery 19 Wool knitting 22 Batik printing 21 Screen printing 20 Fabric painting 30 Medicinal and aromatic plants 30 Source: Primary Data

The table no 5.1 points out that a total number of 1+2 rural poor women participated in the various training programmes organized by the Department of Women Development under the SHGs in the year 2011 — 12. Meeting of these training programmes were organized by the SHG with the financial assistance from the various agencies like NABARD and FVTF. Such training programmes were very successful in employment and income generation for the rural poor women.

The table no 5.2 describes the various skill development programmes organized by the Women.

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Table No 5.2 Shows the Skill development programme in 2012 -13

Name of skill development Number of Programme Participants Umbrella making 10 Quail farming 18 Rabbit rearing 20 Book binding, paper bag& 10 Plant nurseries 9 Vermi-composting& 60 Soap making 20 Value addition for local products 25

Source: Primary Data

In 2012-13 a total number of 63 rural women participated in the Capacity Development Programme and nearly half of them were plated in the various micro enterprises units and the self employment schemes. Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme was attended by 48 rural women and in the rural Enterprises Development Programme, 198 rural women participated. Besides, various programmes were conducted for awareness creation, skill training skill development and for income generation for rural women. The Revolving fund programme was introduced and activities like goat and rabbit rearing, production of readymade garments, curry powder etc. was undertaken for income generation. The various training and skill development programmes organized by SHG in 2012 - 13 and the number of beneficiaries of the programmes arc shown in the following table 5.3.

SSI course, a two months residential programme with the aim of providing education and skill to poor girls from the rural areas so as to

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make them self sufficient in their own affairs as well as in the community life. A total 525 girl students in 21 batches each batch consisting of 25 students were given skill training and nearly 42% (219) were placed in micro enterprises units, self employments and other employments. In the same year 120 women participated in other capacity development programmes of which 42 were placed in the micro enterprises and self employment. Besides, 40 women were given Home Nursing training.

In the year 2008-2009, 127 rural women participated in the Capacity Development Programmes and 45 of them were placed in micro enterprise units and self employments besides 20 women participated in Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programmes and 43 women were given Home Nursing training. A lot of activities were organized for rural women like garment making, food processing, floriculture and milk batches with the assistance from village and block Panchayats. ‘SSI' course was conducted for 19 batches of girl students with each batch consisting of 20 students, in Older to provide education and skill for self employment. Moreover, an amount of Rs. 40 lakhs was spent under Rastriya Mahila Khosh to help the rural poor women to find self employment. A lot of other programmes were also undertaken by SHG for the income and employment generation.

In 2009-2010, 120 rural women participated in the Capacity Development Programme of which 48 women were placed in micro enterprises units and in the various self employment schemes. 30 women were given Home Nursing training and 106 women participated in the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme. Besides, 135 poor women participated in the Enterprises Development Programme. Rs. 40 lakhs was spent under Rastriya Mahila Khosh for helping the rural poor women to secure employment. Various other programmes for awareness creation and skill training also were undertaken during the year regarding

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the formation and stabilization of SHG units, preparation of business plans and project reports, vermin composting eco friendly living, medicinal plant cultivation etc.

In the year 2001 - 02. 56 women participated in the Capacity Development Programme and 25 of them were placed in various micro enterprises units and the self employment schemes. The number of rural women participants in the rural Enterprises Development Programme was S3. Rs. 40 lakhs was spent under Rastriya Mahila Khosh to promote rural credit and self employment of women. A national level workshop was organized on empowerment of rural women through the introduction of appropriate skill and training. Awareness programmes regarding SHG formation and stabilization, micro credit, small business, Panchayat Raj and eco friendly living, were conducted covering 60 villages and 5450 rural women from 60 villages participated in the various programmes. Three highly successful training programmes of one month duration with the assistance of NABARD were conducted regarding the preparation of business plans, conducting survey, preparing projects and assigning financial resources in which 64 rural women participated and 23 of them started small enterprises. Besides, 103 poor women participated and took training in the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme.

In 2010-2011 a lot of training programmes, national workshops and skill development programmes were organized by SHGs. They include the SHGs level training programme on the concept of basic principles of Women SHGs and linkage programmes in which 225 women members of Women SHGs participated, micro level project planning for the SHGs members in which 900 women SHGs members participated, live day skill training for the SHGs members in which 300 women members participated and a training on traditional handicrafts in which 300 women

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members participated. A national level workshop on the up gradation and employment generation was organized for the rural women through integrated pest and disease management technologies in which 60 women SHGs members participated.

Another national level workshop was organized for the conservation and cultivation of medicinal plants as a means of health care and income generation for rural women in which 60 women SHG members participated. Besides, a skill development training was given to the women SHG members on batik printing, motor winding, screen printing, electronic choke making, soap making, book binding, curry powder making.

Production of pickles, Pappas, umbrella, and readymade garments, vermin composting and the production of tooth powder, baby food, agarbathy. And candles, agriculture plant nursery, quail farming and rabbit rearing. Under Capacity Development Programme 157 rural women got trained and 53 out of them were placed in micro enterprise units and self employment schemes. Under Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme 106 rural poor women and under Enterprises Development Programme 64 rural women got trained. Under Rastriya Mahila Khosh Rs 40 lakhs was spent for the rural credit and the self employment of rural poor women.

In the year 2011-2012. the Capacity Development Programme organized by SHG was attended by 80 rural women and 32 out of them were placed in the micro enterprises units and self employment schemes. Again, under the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme 48 women and under the Enterprises Development Programme 105 rural women got training. Besides, ‘Gramodharan’. An Awareness Programme, which is a programme by SHG with exclusively its own funding, was

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organized for providing training and creation of awareness among the rural poor women on regular basis for their own empowerment and development. Various other specific training programmes also were conducted by SHG in the year 2012-2013. like training in fabric painting, electrical embroidery works, wool knitting, batik painting, screen printing and the cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants. Certain other programmes also were conducted by the Women Development Department of SHG for the skill development of rural poor women like one day awareness and orientation programme on value addition process, and a five days skill development programme on

* Quail farming

* Book binding, paper bag and envelop making

* Plant nurseries

* Vermin - composting and vegetable cultivation

* Soap making

* Value addition for local and agricultural products

* Orientation about marketing local products.

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Table No 5.3 Training Skill Development and Income Generation Programmes by SHG in 2012-2013. Number of Name of the Programme Beneficiaries Vegetable Cultivation 1500 Vermi – composting 1500 Consumer Stores 32 Door to Door Delivery 125 Medicinal Plant Cultivation 224 Income Generation Programmes 160 Skill Training 160 Home Remedies Preparation 224 Revolving Fund Programmes 175 Demonstration Classes on Home Remedies 160 Source: Primary Data

In the various training and skill development programmes organized by the SHG in 2012-2013, intending to create awareness and empowerment among poor rural women for generating employment and income. 4260 rural women took part and became beneficiaries of these programmes. In addition to the above programmes, SHG has been organizing awareness and empowerment programmes for the women SHG members on a regular basis.

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Table No 5.4 Participation of Women in Skill Training undertaken by SHG under Capacity Development Programme

Number of Cumulative Year Trainees Total 2005-06 93 93 2006-07 120 213 2007-08 127 340 2008-09 120 460 2009-10 56 516 2010-11 157 673 2011-12 80 753 2012-13 63 816 Total 816 Source: Primary Data

Skill training under Capacity Development Programme was started by SHGs on a large scale in the year 2005-06 and 93 rural women were given skill training under this programme in the same year. The above table 5.4 points out that a total of 816 rural women participated in this training programme from 2005-2006 to2012-2013.

A lot of specific programmes have been undertaken by SHG for the women development under various schemes. The important among these programmes are

1. Capacity Development Programme ( C'DP ) 2. Awareness Generation Programme ( AGP) 3. Home Nurse Training ( H N T )

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4. Enterprises Development Programme ( EDP ) 5. Human Resources Development ( HRD ) 6. Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme (REDP).

The above programmes have been organized by SHG with the financial assistance from the Central Government, the State Government, and from the different other national agencies like NABARD and APART.

The following Table 5.5 shows the various programmes undertaken by SHGs over the years from2005-2006 to2012-2013 and also the number of women participants in the various programmes.

Table No 5.5 Number of Participants in the Various Programmes.

Year CDP AGP HNT EDP HRD REDP 2005-06 93 11664 35 0 182 0 2006-07 120 12368 40 0 0 2007-08 127 14388 43 0 264 20 2008-09 120 15888 30 135 310 106 2009-10 56 16200 0 82 276 103 2010-11 157 18112 0 64 382 106 2011-12 80 19928 0 105 552 48 2012-13 63 23696 0 198 603 48 816 132244 148 584 2794 431 Source: Primary Data

As may be understood from the Table no 5.5, a total of 816 women have participated in the Capacity Development Programme, 132244 rural women have participated in the Awareness Generation Programme, 1+8 in Home Nurse Training, 58+ in Enterprises Development Programme. 279+

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in Human Resources Development and a total of +31 rural women have participated in the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme.

The Capacity Development Programme. Awareness Generation Programme and Human Resources Development Programme have been conducted for all the years from2005-2006 to2012-2013. The Home Nurse Training has been conducted for only four years from 2005-06 to2008-09. The Enterprises Development Programme was begun in the year 2005-06 and has been continued in the subsequent years up to 2012-2013. The Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme, a very effective programme by SHG for the skill development of the rural poor women, was begun in 2007-08 and continued throughout the years from 2007-08 to 2012-2013.

Now for the analysis of the data on above programmes and to explain the growth significance of the such programmes, a different method known as Index Wise description method, has been adopted. It is a method in which a definite weight age has been given to each programme on the basis of the number of participants in the above programmes. Then an index is prepared for each year by multiplying the number of participants in each programme with the weight age given to the programme. After the preparation of index for the various years, the first year index may be taken as the base, i.e. the first year index may be expressed as 100 and the index for the subsequent years may be expressed in relation to the base year index. From such a table of index the growth significance can well be understood.

In the process of preparation of the Index the weight age has been given to each programme by dividing the total number of participants in

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the specific programme with the total number of participants in all the programmes. Thus, the weight age has been given to the various programmes in the following way.

Capacity Development Programme : 816/137017 = 0.005955 Awareness Generation Programme : 132244/137017 = 0.965165 Home Nurse Training : 148/ 137017 = 0.001080

Enterprises Development Programme :584/ 137017 = 0.004262 Human Resources Development :2794/ 137017 = 0.020392 Rural Entrepreneurship Development : 431 / 37017 = 0.003146

Accordingly, the Index has been prepared for each year from 2005- 2006 to 2012-13 taking. 2005-2006 Index = (93 x OCX)5955 + 11664 x 0.965165 + 35 x 0.001080 + 0 x 0.(X)+262 + 182 x 0.020392 + 0x 0.003146 ) x 100. Thus Indices for the various years have been prepared and expressed in relation to the base year 2005-2006 Index = 100. The table 5.6 below shows the Indices for the various years from 2005-2006 to 2012-13.

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Table No 5.6 Year wise indices of women participation in training Number of Cumulative Year Trainees Total 2005-06 93 93 2006-07 120 213 2007-08 127 340 2008-09 120 460 2009-10 56 516 2010-11 157 673 2011-12 80 753 2012-13 63 816 Total 816 Source: Primary Data

As may be seen in the table no 5.6, 2005-2006 has been adopted as the base year and the actual value 1 1261.99 of the year 2005-06 has been taken as 100. The Index of 2008-2009 has been 106.04-26 and only a slow growth has been visualized in the Index which has been due to the absence of two major programmes in the year 2008-09 and also due to the very small increase it the number of participants in the Awareness Generation Programme during the same year. The Index for 2007-2008 has been 123.3622 which has been due to a higher increase in the number of women participants in the various programmes, especially in the Awareness Generation Programme. The number of trainees increased by about 2020 in the Awareness Generation Programme in the year 2007-08. Moreover, the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme ( REDP ) was started in the same year.

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In 2008-09, the Index has been 136.2327 which may be understood to be significant but the growth rate of Index has been a little lower as compared to that of the previous year. This has been due to a lower growth in the number of participants in the Awareness Generation Programme compared to that of the previous year. In the year 2009-10, the Index has been 138.8947 and only a small increase in the Index has been visualized. This has been because of the decrease in the number of participants in the Capacity Development Programme from 127 to 56.

That of Enterprises Development Programme from 135 to 82. that of Human Resources Development from 310 to 276 and that of Rural Entrepreneurship Programme from 106 to 103 even though the number of participants in the Awareness Generation Programme increased from 15888 to 16200. The Home Nurse Training Programme has been stopped in the same year.

In 2010-11, the Index was 155.3047 and it is sufficiently high as compared to that of the previous year. This was due to a rather large increase in the number of participants in AGP from 16200 to 181 12. that of CGP from 56 to 157, that of 11RD from 276 to 382 and that of REDP from 103 to 106. The number of participants in EDP has decreased from 82 to 6+.

The Index for 2003-0+ has been 170.8947 which is much higher than that of the previous year. The reason for this is that the number of participants in AGP has increased from 18112 to 19928, that of EDP increased from 64 to 105 that of IIRD increased from 382 to 552 even though that of EDP decreased from 157 to 80 and that of REDP decreased from 106 to 48 in the same year. The Index for the year 2012-2013 stood at 203.1987 which has been sufficiently high as compared to that of the

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previous year. In 2012-2013, the number of participants in AGP increased from 1992S to 23696 that of EDP increased from 105 to 198, and that of IIRD increased from 552 to 603. However, the number of participants in Capacity Development Programme decreased from 80 to 63.

Thus, by examining the indices of various programmes, we can understand that there has been a regular increase in the number of women participants in the various programmes organized by SHG for achieving women development and thus realize the major objective of economic and community development of Tamilnadu.

MICRO FINANCE AND WOMEN DEVELOPMENT The most important and effective instrument of women empowerment and development has been the micro credit and micro finance activities undertaken by the various women SHGs. The SHG’s has promoted a large number of Women SHGs of women in the different parts of Thiruvarur district. The mobilization of small savings and the supply of micro credit have enabled the women SHGs to organize the employment and income generation activities for the poor women in the rural areas thereby leading to women development and the community development of the specific local areas.

The Thiruvarur District has promoted a very large network of Women SHGs throughout the area and nearly 80% of such SHG’s were women SHGs. In the year 2005-2006, there were only about 28 women SHGs promoted by SHGs. Since then the number of women SHG’s increased over the years and by 2012-2013. The number of women SHGs increased to 1346. In 2012-2013, the total number of Women SHGs promoted by SHGs has been 1702 and out of them 1346 was women SHGs. The Table 5.7 below shows the number of women SHGs promoted by SHGs from to 2012-2013.2005-2006

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Table No 5.7 The Number of Women SHGs promoted by SHG Year Number of Women SHGs 2005-06 28 2006-07 81 2007-08 154 2008-09 182 2009-10 217 2010-11 249 2011-12 269 2012-13 166 Total 1346

Source: Primary Data

It may be seen from the table no 5.7, there has been a substantial increase in the number of women SHGs from2005-2006to2012-2013. The number of women SHGs has been 28 in 2005-2006 and it increased to 1346 in 2012-2013. The largest increase in the number of women SHGs has been in the year 2011-12 and there was an increase of 269 women SHGs in the same year. In 1998-99 the number of women SHGs increased by 81in 2006-07 the number increased by 154. In 2008-09 by 182, in 2009-10 by 217 in 2010-2011 by 249 and in 2012-2013 the number increased by 166.

The data relating to the number of women SHGs promoted by Thiruvarur District shown in the table 4.7 has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below for a better understanding of the data and for easy comparison of the values corresponding to different years.

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The women SHGs under SHGs have been highly successful in their micro finance operations. They have been able to promote and mobilize a substantial amount of small savings from among their members. There has been a regular increase in the savings mobilized by the Women SHGs over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 The table no. 5.8 below shows the growth in the small savings by the Women SHGs from the year 2005-06 to 2012-13.

Table No 5.8 Growth in the Small Savings by the Women SHGs under SHGs Year Savings (Rs. lakhs ) 2005-06 1.23 2006-07 3.58 2007-08 9.17 2008-09 14.29 2009-10 18.75 2010-11 20.37 2011-12 23.38 2012-13 14.77 Total 105.54 Source: Primary Data

As may be understood from the table no 5.8, there has been a regular increase in the savings mobilized by the women SHGs over the years from 2005-06 to 2012-13. The total savings of the women SHGs was Rs. 1.23 lakhs in the year 2005-06. Since then there was a regular increase in their savings so that it increased to Rs. 3.58 lakhs in 2006-07, to Rs. 9.17 lakhs in 2007-08 to Rs. 14.29 lakhs in 2008-09, to Rs. 18.75 lakhs in 2009-10. to Rs. 20.37 lakhs in 2010-11 and to Rs. 23.38 lakhs in 2012-13.

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The largest amount of savings was mobilized in the year 2011-12 with the amount equal to Rs.23.38 lakhs. However, in 2012-2013 the amount of savings by the women SI IGs has decreased to Rs. 14.77 lakhs.

The data relating to the small savings mobilized by the Women SHGs under SHGs shown in the table 5.8 has been presented in the form of a simple bar chart as shown below.

Figure 5.1 Small Savings Mobilized by Women SHGs under SHG

SAVINGS BY WOMEN SHGs

0 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13

SAVINGS

From the Figure5.1, it may be seen that there has been a substantial increase in the amount of savings by the women SHGs under SHG over the years from 2012-2013. The amount of savings has been Rs. 1.23 lakhs in 2005-2006 which increased to Rs. 20.37 lakhs in 2010-2011 and to Rs. 23.38 lakhs in 2011-13. In the year 2012-13, the amount of savings mobilized by the women SHGs has been Rs. 14.77 lakhs.

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It may be understood from the above data that apparently, the relationship between the years and the small savings mobilized by the women SHGs under SHG, is quite significant. Otherwise, the increase in the savings by the women SIIGs, over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012- 2013 is economically significant. However, in order to test the statistical significance of this apparent relationship between the years and the savings mobilized, a linear regression model has been fitted to the data above. Since savings arc found related to year, the linear regression model lilted is of the form.

y = a + bx where x represents year (independent variable) and y represents savings ( the dependent variable) As the Excel Package of statistical tools have been used, the regression equation turned out to be y = a + bx where a = -5508.19 and b =2.76

In order to test whether the regression coefficient is statistically significant or not, the method of testing the hypothesis has been adopted. The null hypothesis has been formulated as Ho : b = 0 The alternative hypothesis has been. Hi : b 36 0

The null hypothesis Ho : b = 0 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis Hi : b * 0. In the testing procedure the T' value has been obtained as follows P = 0.007343

Since the *P* value has been found very small, it may be concluded that the regression Coefficient is significant. The null hypothesis. Ho : b = 0 is rejected and the alternative hypothesis. Hi : b t- 0 is accepted. Thus it may be understood that this regression model is worth using in any year to get the corresponding value of savings. Therefore, it may be concluded

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that the growth in the small savings by the Women SHGs over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 has been much significant and that the Women SHGs under SHG have been very successful in mobilizing the small savings of poor women in the locality.

WOMEN SHGs AND MICRO CREDIT The women SHGs have been highly successful in providing micro credit to their members which enabled them to acquire gainful employment, raise their level of income and improve their standard of living. Micro credit to the poor enabled them to take advantage of existing opportunities, build up income generating assets, generate self employment and develop micro enterprises units. All these have led to the economic and community development of the particular village area in which the women SHGs have been organized.

The micro credit has Seen distributed by the women SHGs among their members by way of both internal lending and also by availing bank link loans through SHG bank linkage. The table no 5.9, shows the total credit disbursed by the women SHGs among their members, the internal lending made by them and also the amount of bank loans availed and distributed among the women SHG members.

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Table No 5.9 Total Credit, Internal landing and Bank loan by the Women SHGs Total Credit Internal Lending Bank Link Loans Year Rs. Lakhs Rs. lakhs Rs. lakhs 2005-06 0.63 0.63 0.0 2006-07 3.35 3.35 0.0 2007-08 8.77 8.77 0.28 2008-09 27.2+ 16.76 10.+8 2009-10 +7.48 29.86 17.62 2010-11 138.1+ 26.10 112.1+ 2011-12 119.30 61.80 57.50 2012-13 105.58 +9.32 56.26 Total +50.+9 196.21 25+.25 Source: Primary Data

As may be seen from the table no 5.9, there has been a substantial increase in the micro credit disbursed by the women SHGs among their members, from 2005-2006 to 2012-13. The total credit supplied by the women SHGs was Rs 0.63 lakhs in 2005-2006 which increased steadily to Rs 3.35 lakhs in 2006-07 and to Rs. 8.77 lakhs in 2007-2008. From 2008- 09 onwards there has been a very great increase in the total credit disbursed by the women SHGs. In 2009-10 the credit disbursed by them was Rs 27.24 lakhs which increased to Rs 47.48 lakhs in 2010-11 and to Rs 138.14 lakhs in 2011-12. There has been a very large increase in the total credit in 2012-13 and it was due to the large amount of bank link loan of Rs 112.14 lakhs availed by the women SHGs in the same year for disbursing among the SIIG members. In 2013-14, the total credit disbursed by the women SHGs stood at Rs 119.30 lakhs and in 2012- 2013, it was Rs 105.58 lakhs. A total of Rs 450.49 lakhs of micro credit

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has been distributed by the women SHGs among their members from 2005-2006 to 2012-13..

Again, as may be understood from the table 4.9 above, there has been a substantial increase in the internal lending by the women SHGs under PRS over the years from 2005-2006 to 2012-13. Internal lending was Rs 0.63 lakhs in 2005-06 which increased to Rs 3.35 lakhs in 2006-07 and to Rs 8.49 lakhs in 2007-08. In 2008-09, it was Rs 16.76 lakhs and it increased to Rs 29.86 lakhs in 2009-10. The internal lending was Rs 26.00 lakhs in 2010-11 which increased sharply to Rs 61.80 lakhs in 2011-2012. In 2012-13, the internal lending was Rs 49.32 lakhs. A total amount of Rs 196.21 lakhs was distributed by the women SHGs among their members from 2005-2006 to 2012-13.

Time linkage has been established by the women SHGs with the banks and the formal financial institutions by which large amount of link loans could be availed and distributed among the SHG members. In 2005- 2006 and 2006-2007 there was no link loan availed by the Women SHGs. From 2007-2008 onwards the women SHGs began to avail link loans and distribute them among their members. In 2007-2008. the bank loan was the ratio of bank loan to total credit has been comparatively high in the case of women SHGs. The table 5.10 below shows the total credit —bank loan ratio of women SHGs from 2005-06 to 2012-13.

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Table No 5.10 Total Credit - Bank loan Ratio of Women SHGs

Total Credit- Total Credit- Year Bank loan-Rs in lakhs Bank Loan Bank Loan Ratio 2005-2006 0.63 0.0 0.00 2006-2007 3.98 0.0 0.00 2007-2008 12.75 0.28 0.02 2008-2009 39.99 10.76 0.27 2009-2010 87.47 28.38 0.32 2011-2012 225.61 140.52 0.62 2012-2013 344.91 198.02 0.57 2013-2014 450.49 254.28 0.56 Source: Primary Data

As May he understood from the table no 5.10. There was no bank link loan availed by the women SIIGs in the years 2005-2006 to 2012- 2013. In 2007-2008, the bank link loan constituted 1% of the total credit distributed by the women SHGs. However, the bank link loan increased to 27% of the total credit in 2008-2009 and to 32% in 2009-2010.

The bank loan accounted for about 62 Percent of the total credit in the year 2011-2012. In 2013-14 the bank loan constituted about 57 Percent of the total credit and in 2013-2014, it constituted 56 Percent of the total credit. Thus, there has been a significant growth in the total credit - hank loan ratio of women SHGs under SHG over the years from 2005- 2006 to 2012-2013.

The total credit — bank loan ratio of women SHGs under SHGs has been found more or less similar to that of the general SI IGs under SHGs. The table 5.11 below, shows the total credit - hank loan ratio of Women SHGs general and the women SHGs from the year 2005-2006 to 2012- 2013.

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Table No 5.11 Total Credit - Bank loan Ratio of Women SHGs General and Women SHGs TC-BL Ratio TC - BL Ratio Year Women SHGs Women SHGs General 2005-2006 0.00 0.00 2006-2007 0.00 0.00 2007-2008 0.02 0.02 2008-2009 0.25 0.27 2009-2010 0.31 0.32 2010-2011 0.60 0.62 2011-2012 0.55 0.57 2012-2013 0.54 0.56 Source: Percent Data. (TC-Total Credit, BL-Bank loan )

As may be seen in the table no 5.11, there are only slight differences in the total credit -bank loan ratio between Women SHGs general and women SHGs for various years. The ratio is slightly higher for the women SHGs as compared to that of the SIHGs general. In 2005- 2006 and 2006-2007 there was no hank link loan in both cases. In 2007- 2008, the ratio has been 0.02 for SI IGs general and for the women SHGs. Since then, there has been a steady growth in the total credit-hank loan ratio and it increased to 0.25 for Women SHGs general and 0.27 for women SHGs. It increased to 0.31 and 0.32 respectively in 2001-02. In 2010-2011, it was 0.60 and 0.62 respectively for Women SHGs general and for women SHGs. The ratio decreased slightly to 0.55 and 0.56 respectively in 2011-2012 and it further became 0.54 and 0.56 respectively in the year 2023-13.

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For a better comparison of the above data, it has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as follows.

Figure No. 5.2 Total Credit- Bank loan Ratio of Women SHGs General groups and General SHGs

COMPARISON BANK LOAN TO TOTAL CREDIT

0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 SHGs GENERAL

SHGs GENERAL WOMEN SHG

As maybe understood from the multiple bar charts above, the total credit bank loan ratio has been more or less the same for the Women SHGs general and for the women SHGs. The highest total credit - bank loan ratio has been observed for both Women SHGs general and for the women SHGs in the year 2012-2013. Also, there has been more or less a steady growth in the total credit bank loan ratio for the Women SHGs general and for women SHGs. Again, the ratio is slightly higher for the women SHGs compared to that of the Women SHGs general. It has been due to the wider SHGs hank linkage established for the women SHGs under SHGs.

It may be understood that, apparently, the total credit - bank loan ratio is more or less the same for the Women SHGs general and fro the women SHGs. However, in order to understand whether the total credit-

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bank loan ratio of the SIHGs general and of women SHGs is statistically equal or not. a two tailed ‘t* Test of the two variables assuming equal variances has been conducted. In the testing procedure the null hypothesis has been formulated as:-

Ho : M1 = M2 where M< M? are the mean of the first and second variables respectively, which have been tested. The alternative hypothesis has been formulated as:- Hi : M1 * M2 The null hypothesis Ho : m>= M2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis H1 : M1 * M1- 1° the testing procedure the ‘P* value has been obtained as P = 0.945351

Since the ‘P* value is very high, we accept the null hypothesis Ho: m1, =m2.i.e. The Two populations have the same mean. Thus, it may he concluded that the total credit-bank loan ratio of the Women SHGs general and that of the women SHGs are statistically equal.

REPAYMENT The repayment of small loans on a regular basis is one of the most important factors leading to the success of micro finance operations. The women SHGs under SHGs have managed to maintain a very high and effective repayment rate on the small loans distributed among their members. The table 5.12 below, shows the repayment rate on small loans by the Women SHGs.

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Table No 5.12 The Repayment Rate on Small Loans by the Women SHGs

Year Repayment Rate (Percentage ) 2005-2006 96.5

2006-2007 97.5 2007-2008 99.1 2008-2009 99.2 2009-2010 98.5 2010-2011 98.5 2011-2012 99.1 2012-2013 99.1

Source : Primary Data.

It may be understood from the table no 5.12 that the repayment rate on small loans distributed by the women SHGs has been very high. The repayment rate was 96.5% in 2005-2006 and it was 99.1% in 2012-2013. The women SHGs under SHG have been able to maintain the repayment rate above 95% for all the years from 2005-2006-to 2012-2013. The regular repayment of small loans is very important requirement for the success of micro credit and micro finance by the Women SHGs under SHGs.

When compared with the Women SHGs general, the repayment rate of women SHGs are slightly higher than the repayment rate of Women SHGs general under SHGs. The table 5.13 below compares the repayment rate of SHGs general and that of women SHGs from2005-2006-to 2012- 2013.

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Table No 5.13 Repayment Rate of Women SHGs General and Women SHGs under SHGs

Repayment Rate Repayment Rate Women Year Women SHGs Women SHGs General 2005-2006 94 96.5 2006-2007 95 97.5 2007-2008 97 99.1 2008-2009 97 99.2 2009-2010 99 98.5 2010-2011 98 98.5 2011-2012 98 99.1 2012-2013 99 99.1 Source: Primary data

It may be seen from the table no 5.13 that the repayment rate on small loans by the Women SHGs general has been 9+% in 2005-2006 while that of Women SHGs has been 96.5*2 in the same year. The repayment rate has shown an increase over the years for both Women SHGs general and women SHGs.

The repayment rate increased to 99% for Women SHGs general in 2012-2013 while that of women SHGs increased to 99.1% in the same year. Thus the repayment rate of women SHGs have been slightly higher than that of the Women SHGs general. The reason behind this is the fact that the women SI Ids have been more actively organizing the micro finance operations than the men Women SHGs.

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For a better comparison of the repayment rates of Women SHGs general and the women SHGs. the table 5.13 above has been presented in the form of a multiple bar chart as given below.

Figure No. 5.3 Repayment rates of SHGs general and women SHG

REPAYMENT RATE - GENERAL AND WOMEN

99.1 99.2 99 99.1 99 99.1 98.5 98.5 98 98 97.5 97 97 96.5 95 94

SHGs WOMEN SHGS

As may be understood from the multiple bar chart above, in the initial years, there has been some difference between the repayment rates of Women SHGs general and that of women SHGs. The repayment rate of women SHGs has been higher than that of Women SHGs general by about 2.5 percent. However, in the later years, the repayment rates of the Women SHGs general and that of women SHGs came closer and there has been no much difference between the two rates apparently.

As may he understood from the multiple bar chart above, in the initial years, there has been some difference between the repayment rates of Women SHGs general and that of women SHGs. The repayment rate of women SHGs has been higher than that of Women SHGs general by about 2.5 percent. However, in the later years, the repayment rates of the

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Women SHGs general and that of women SHGs came closer and there has been no much difference between the two rates apparently.

Apparently, the repayment rates of the Women SHGs general and SHGs have been similar as no much difference has been observed between the two series of values. The two mean values seemed to be almost equal but the variance has been much different for the two series. Therefore, it is important to test whether the two series arc statistically equal or not and for this the two variables have been subjected to the two tailed t Test assuming unequal variances.

The null hypothesis has been formulated as. Ho : Hi = M2 where Mi an(l M2 are the mean of the two samples ( variables). The alternative hypothesis has been formulated as Hi : mi * M2

The null hypothesis Ho : Mi = M2 has been tested against the alternative hypothesis Hi : m> * M2 using the Excel package of statistical tools. In the testing procedure the ‘P’ value has been found as P = 0.097508

Since the ‘P‘ value has been comparatively high, we have accepted the null hypothesis and rejected the alternative hypothesis. It may he noted that the two population have the same mean. Thus, it may be understood that the repayment rates of Women SHGs general and the women SHGs are statistically equal. Therefore, it may be concluded that women SHGs and the Women SHGs general under SHG have been able to maintain a very high repayment rate on the small loans and it has been the key factor behind the success of the micro finance operations of women SI IGs.

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It may be summarized that SHG. as a local NGO. has been actively engaged in women development and empowerment through the Women SHGs. The micro finance operations of women SHGs under SHG have been very effective in promoting self employment and income generating activities for the poor women particularly in the Thiruvarur District.. The women SHGs have been able to promote and mobilize the small savings of the members and arrange micro credit to the member families both out of the savings and also by way of bank link loans availed through SHG bank linkage. There has been a very high repayment rate maintained by the women SHGs on the small loans by the members. The SHG movement promoted by SHG has given an opportunity for the women the problems of poverty, oppression of women, and lack of economic independence for women etc. which ultimately led to the solution of the above problems in the locality to a large extent.

Again, the skill training, capacity development and awareness generation programmes organized by SHG have benefited the poor rural women in the locality and they could develop micro enterprises and self employment units for income generation.

SHG has organized a lot of training programmes which have been specialized for women in order to promote self employment and income generation activities. There has been a special department of women development in SHG to organize and monitor the women development and the empowerment programmes. Thus, the intervention of SHG has been very successful in promoting the women development and empowerment in the Thiruvarur District Women SHGs.

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CHAPTER - VI SHG SUSTAINABLE NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

India has been considered as the land of village communities from the very early periods onwards. The predominantly rural character of India is understood from the fact that nearly 70% of its population is accommodated in the rural sector and it contributes about 29% of GDP. Agriculture provides direct employment to 659} of the people in the country and contributes 29% of the Grass Domestic Product and contributes a sizable share of India’s exports. As per the Census 2001 Report, out of 402.51 million workers 235.08 million workers arc directly dependent on agriculture. In a vast country like India, which is marked by the existence of innumerable socio cultural, economic, educational, political and religious problems, the development of rural areas and rural people occupies a significant place in our efforts towards planned and directed social change.

This highlights the fact that a strategy of socio economic development for India that neglects the rural people and the rural areas can never be successful. Hence the rural development occupies a very important role in the achievement of economic development of the country. Rural development is the overall development of the rural areas for improving the quality of life of the people in the rural areas. It encompasses the development of agriculture and allied activities, the village and cottage industries, socio economic infrastructure, the community services and facilities and the development of human resources.

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Again, there is a widespread degradation of natural resources throughout the country and therefore country's food security and sustainable agricultural development can be achieved only by developing resource conserving technologies. The country wide adoption of resource conserving technologies can ensure sustainable food production and livelihood security. Only by developing new technologies there can be the production of more quality food materials at reduced cost from the marginal quality of lands and water resources. Similarly, the low cost new technologies arc required in agriculture related activities like processing of agricultural food materials and other agricultural produces. The resource conserving technologies revitalize our natural resources thereby leading to the sustainable rural development of the country.

In India, the resource conserving technologies have been developed and introduced by the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) guided by (ICAR) with the assistance from the various international agencies. In agriculture, the resource conserving technologies consist of zero till with the minimal soil disturbance and the compaction, the innovative cropping systems and the management of the crop residues rather than burning them.

The ‘zero till’ refers to a complete soil and crop management system sensitive to the local situations and resource endowments of the farmers. Its benefits arc manifold to the small farmers as it lowers production costs, improves productivity, saves the irrigation water and avoids crop residues from burning. Furrow irrigated raised bed ( FIRB ) planting system is another resource conserving technology in agriculture which saves about 30 to 40 percent seed and water, reduces crop lodging, improves grain filling yield and grain quality and avoids temporary water

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logging problems. Another resource conserving technology in agriculture is Laser Land leveling. In irrigated and rain fed environments Laser Land leveling improves uniform application of water, nutrients and agricultural chemicals and improves environment quality and crop yields. The resource conserving technologies have to be popularized and widely adopted in order to conserve the natural resources and to achieve sustainable rural development.

One of the major problems of Tamilnadu is the problem of unemployment. There were 38 lakhs unemployed persons registered with employment exchanges at the end of March 2004. The rate of unemployment in the state has been estimated to be 20.97%. The declining trend of agricultural operations and the growth of unemployment have a coincidence in the case of Tamilnadu. Further, the employment absorption capacity of the agricultural sector is on the decline due to the application of the labor saving technology, declining public investment and lifting of quantitative restrictions on the import of agricultural products. Moreover, agricultural productivity is on the decline. The decline in the agricultural productivity is partly due to variations in the rainfall and due to the lack of systematic means and methods of cultivation and irrigation.

The compounded adverse effects of the over exploitation of the natural resources have reduced the productivity of the bulk of our usable lands and they are experiencing diminishing returns. There are increasing environmental problems due to deforestation and soil erosion, the siltation of channels and consequent flooding, over irrigation and the drainage congestion, the high yielding farming systems depending on the agricultural chemicals and stagnant yields at increasing input costs. Again,

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there is the lack of land literacy which leads to land degradation. Unsustainable agricultural practices have the effect of reducing soil fertility and extensive degrading of the cultivable land. Unsustainable agricultural practices are characterized by a. Inefficient and wasteful use of land and water resources b. Inappropriate crop intensification c. Expansion of agriculture in to marginal lands d. Use of farm machinery and farm practices that are not sustainable to local soil and water conditions.

There are no sustained efforts at restoring the fertility of the degraded soil and water resources in the state at present the sustainability of the soil and resources is vital for the survival of the vast masses of the rural population. Eco-inimical and the unsustainable methods of cultivation are often adopted in the state which has far the reaching consequences on the environment and on the health of the people in the state. Moreover, the water resources in the state arc mismanaged and miss-utilized so that there has been a gradual decline in the availability of them.

The challenge before us is how we can meet our present needs and at the same time conserve our natural resources and the ecosystem so that they can him available to the present and future generations on a long standing basis. It is actually called the sustainable development. Substantial resource investment, innovative solutions and the input of efforts of affected communities will be necessary to stop the spread of land degradation and begin restoring degraded lands.

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Agriculture and allied activities, being a major contributor to the economic development of the state, have to be promoted with steps at policy and action levels. For providing employment to the growing rural work force and to lessen the burden of work force on agriculture, there should be the expansion of the rural non farm sector so that the number of gainful employment opportunities may be increased in this sector. The land literacy becomes an essential means of survival for the rural population and it is to be realized that the sustainability of resources are vital for the future. For the economic development of the state there should be the rural development which may be brought about through enhancing the quality of life of the farmers, women, children and the other marginalized communities throughout the state. However, these have been confined to the policy levels of the governance and the bureaucracy and they hardly come to the level of implementation.

Again, examining the agricultural scenario of the state, there is a very big change over to the cultivation of cash crops, with food crops production coining down substantially. 1'his increases the state dependence on the neighboring slates for cereals and other agricultural food materials which will have a far reaching effect upon the domestic economy of the state. There should be an effective intervention in the field of agriculture in the state to set things in the right direction, so that the quality of life of the farmers may be improved, methods of cultivation may be adopted which provides sustainability to the soil and resources and those environment friendly and sustainable technologies may be developed. People’s participation must be an integral component of any measure to combat land degradation and unsustainable agricultural practices. The best strategy to deal with such problems is the formation of a partnership among social communities, nongovernmental organizations

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and the government. Therefore sustainable agricultural development has to be seen as the joint responsibility of the state. NGOs and other institutions in the society. Thus supportive interaction and collaboration from the side of NGOs arc of great importance. It is in this context, the role of NGOs has to be specially highlighted.

NGOs have been important link between people at the grass roots, civil society and the state. They were instrumental in creating awareness and implementing development programmes in agriculture, watershed development, women development and empowerment, education, health and family welfare. There is a network of NGOs throughout the state which work to accomplish the above mentioned objectives, activities and projects in agriculture and other related and allied sectors. The efforts of most of the NGOs in this sector is to improve the quality of life of the farmers, women, children and that of other marginalized communities through action plans based on decentralized institution building, participatory development processes and application of sustainable and eco-friendly technologies.

A large number of NGOs have been working in the field of agriculture and community development, intending to launch the campaign for the production of food crops, to propagate organic farming methods and to promote the participatory technology development for sustainable agriculture. Women SHGs is one of the major NGOs working in the Head of agriculture and community development in the Thiruvarur District thus intending to improve the quality of life of the people and leading to the overall economic and community development of the district. SHG has organized and popularized a large number of activities and programmes which intend to bring about the sustainable natural

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resources management. They include organic farming practices, the development of appropriate technology for the rural areas, development of resource conserving low cost technologies, the integrated watershed development and the proper conservation of the water resources in the rural areas. The present study has fix-used one important programmes undertaken by Women SHGs in the field of sustainable natural resources management and they are .Organic farming.

ORGANIC FARMING India ranked the second in the world in the matter of population and hence the agriculture and food security are the most important concerns of the country. A lot of research and experiments have already been undertaken in this area and as a result of this agricultural production, especially that of food grains production, increased substantially in India over the past few decades. The substantial increase in agricultural production has been due to a lot of factors like modem farming system, improved varieties of crops and adoption of the modem agronomic practices. However, in the recent years, an increasing concern was expressed over the capability of chemical fertilizers in maintaining long term soil productivity and the growing environmental pollution caused by the application of chemical fertilizers.

The modem inorganic farming methods and practices have created a lot of havoc to the environment and it has reduced the quality of agricultural products in the country at present. Hence there was the need for developing alternatives to the modem farming principles and practices. Moreover, in the era of globalization and WTO regime, there have to be more efficiency, competitiveness, cost effectiveness and also the sustainability for the Indian agriculture so that it can compete in the

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international market. An alternative method of farming called organic farming has been introduced recently in the country to improve the crop plants and to avoid the degradation to soil and the environment. With this intension, agriculture in the country is now shifting from modem to organic farming. It has been observed that the organic farming has great impact on the morphological characters compared to modem inorganic farming methods.

Organic agricultural system is based on ecological principles and applying ecological practices to maintain soil fertility, to manage crop and animal health and to keep soil and water in good condition without the use of chemical inputs. Organic farming is a method of farming which excludes completely the application of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides etc. and has been primarily based on principles of using natural organic inputs and biological plant protection measures. The proper practice of organic farming methods will eliminate or reduce water pollution and will help conserve water and soil on the farm thereby enhancing sustainability and agro bio diversity.

There have been two motivating forces behind practicing organic farming methods and they are

1. growing global market for organic agricultural produce due to increased health consciousness and 2. The premium price obtained by the producers for the organic produce. Because of the above reasons, organic farming has become very popular in most of the western countries.

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In India, because the cost of chemicals and credit has increased and the agricultural commodity prices have stagnated, a large number of conventional farmers have searched for a viable alternative to reduce input cost. They have switched on to the organic farming practices because organic farming is characterized as low input farming and its result is economic survival. Organic farming practices have special significance in the ease of India as she has a comparative advantage over several other countries of the world because of the vast cultivated area which has remained free of contamination from the chemicals spread over distinctly varying agro climatic conditions. There are large of areas of cultivated land which are exclusively rain fed regions with very low or zero use of agro chemicals and they can he converted instantly to organic farming. The national programme for organic production has been implemented in the country by an agency under the Ministry of Commerce called Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), with the major responsibility for developing the standards for organic farming and regulatory mechanism for export purposes. At present, a large number of farm groups are actively engaged in exploring organic farming and the marketing opportunities in different parts of the country. Some major NGOs have taken leadership in this regard and they are active in linking organic farmers with health food activists in the country.

The strategy of organic farming is to realize more value from a relatively low yield and capitalize on the inherent advantage of low input use by small farmers. By practicing organic farming, the value addition to health foods and bio fuels can contribute to improved profitability to the farmers.

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The major advantages of organic farming are

¾ Reduction in the use of external inputs and increase in farm organic inputs with the greatest potential benefit of farmers and consumers. ¾ More productivity through the incorporation of natural process as nutrient cycle, nitrogen fixation and pest predator relationship in to the agricultural production process ¾ Greater productive use of the biological and genetic potential of plants and the animal species. ¾ Improvement of match between cropping patterns and the productive potential and physical limitations of agricultural lands to ensure long term sustainability of current production levels ¾ Profitable and efficient production with the emphasis on improved management and conservation of soil, water and energy and the biological resources.

The organic food movement has been gaining importance due to the health consciousness of the people especially in the western countries. These countries are very much aware and conscious of the purity and quality of organic produce. The farmers in India can compete in the global market only by producing quality organic products, the farmers have the required organics certification and the products have met the quality standards. Here the farmers should get the help of NGOs and other agencies. NGOs arc agencies capable of providing intensive training to farmers, encouraging them to achieve the certification of organic farming and facilitating the market access to certified organic products.

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In Tamilnadu, the organic farming practices have been popularized by NGOs who have been working in the different parts of the state. The Women SHGs has been popularizing organic farming in the Thiruvarur District of Tamilnadu. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy in the district and it contributes about 62% of district's income. The lion share of the cultivable land is dominated by Paddy, and Oil seeds owned mostly by some non residents of the district. The majority of the people in the district are small and marginal farmers and plantation workers. Agriculture in the district is on the verge of a decline due to several reasons like the environmental degradation, the natural resources depletion, the unbalanced, unscientific and unsustainable agricultural practices, low and unsteady prices of agricultural crops like Paddy, Groundnut and also due to the very poor marketing infrastructures.

Again, there has been the excessive application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in the district and also the mono cropping practices which have added to the set hack on the agricultural front. The victims of the above said problems have been mostly the poor and marginal farmers. The small farmer’s arc unable to recover even the cost of cultivation due to the lack of direct access to markets and due to the presence of middlemen in most of the markets. As a lair solution to these problems and to ensure sustainable agricultural and economic development of the district, the promotion of eco friendly and sustainable agricultural practices in the Thiruvarur district. SHG has been propagating and popularizing organic farming. There has been an ever increasing demand for organic farm products worldwide and adoption of organic farming could ensure reasonable prices for the produce of small and marginal farmers and also ensure eco friendly and sustainable agricultural practices. SHG has been able to form a network of small and marginal

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farmers in the Thiruvarur district, who follow organic farming practices. SHG has been pioneering the organic cultivation extensively in the state and the Society has become the leading exporter of organic spices in the state.

Under organic farming seven organic cultivation practices have been promoted by Women SHGs and they arc 1. Compost 2. Cow pat pit 3. Horn Manure 4. Liquid Manure 5. Bio dynamic Preparations 6. Bio dynamic Calendar 7. Pest and Disease Control

It has been argued that the adoption of the organic farming practices has contributed positively to the betterment of quality of soil, environment and that of human life. There has been a regular improvement in the quality and quantity of the product, an overall reduction in the cost of cultivation, a decrease in the occurring of pests and plant diseases, a decrease in the medical expenses and an increase in the quality of life of the farmers who adopted organic farming.

In order to understand the impact of organic farming methods on the living conditions of the farmers and also on the farming conditions, in the present study, a Held survey was conducted among the organic farmers under Thiruvarur District. A total of 705 families have adopted and remained under the organic system of farming promoted by SHG ,100 families out of 705 families which have adopted organic farming have been surveyed. The survey has been conducted using the method of

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personal interview and for this interview schedules have been used. A model of the interview schedule has been given in the appendix.

In the survey, information has been sought on the distribution of land area among the farmers, improvement in the quality of product after organic farming practices have been adopted, information on the occurrence of pests and plant diseases, change in the quantity of production, change in the amount of medical expenses incurred and the improvement in the quality of life after the adoption of organic farming methods. The majority of families disclosed the information on the above mentioned aspects as relative changes. The information could be obtained on the above variables as the percentage change and the families could not disclose the actual quantitative change in the variables as result of the adoption of organic farming practices and in that it has been a limitation of the study. The distribution of the land area among the families which have adopted organic farming as observed in the survey has been shown in the table 6.1 below.

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Table No 6.1 Distribution of Land Area Among the Families

Land Area Number of ( in acres ) families 0-1 44 1-2 26 2-3 16 3-4 6 4-5 4 5-6 2 6-7 1 12-13 1 Total 100 Source : Primary Data collected through field survey.

From the table no 6.1, it may be understood that, apparently there has been much inequality in the distribution of land area among the families. The majority of families have a very low acrage of land. 44 families have the land area between zero and one acre. 26 families have land area between one and two acres, 16 families have the land area between two and three acres. Only 6 families have land area between three and four acres, only 4 families have land area between four and five acres. 1 family each has land area between six and seven acres and twelve and thirteen acres.

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Figure No. 6.1 Distribution of land Area among the Families Lorenz Curve of Land Area

Cumulative Frequency

From the Lorenz curve above, it may be understood that there has been a high degree of inequality in the distribution of land among the people who have adopted organic farming practices in the Thiruvarur District. In the diagram, the central diagonal line shows the line of perfect equality in the distribution of land and the Lorenz curve shows the deviation from this central line and the inequality. In this case, the Lorenz curve of land distribution has deviated much from the line of perfect equality and therefore, it may be understood that much inequality has prevailed in the distribution of land among the people in the locality. The reason for this has been understood as that the people in the Thiruvarur District have been very poor so that they could not have an access to more land under their possession.

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In the study it has been observed that the occurrence of diseases have been substantially reduced in the families which have adopted organic farming practices. The monthly medical expenses of the families have come down due to organic farming. The chemical fertilizers, pesticides and other chemicals have been completely avoided from the farm and it has naturally led to a reduction in the occurrence of diseases and to an improvement in the health conditions for each member of the family in the locality.

The percentage reduction in the medical expenses as observed in the survey has been shown in the table 6.2 below

Table No 6.2 Percentage Reduction in the Medical Expenses Percentage reduction Number of families in medical expenses 0-15 6 15-30 13 30 - 45 30 45 - 60 36 60 - 75 12 75 - 90 3 Total 100 Source : Primary Data collected through field survey.

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From the table no 6.2, it may be understood that there has been an average 44 percent decrease in the medical expenses in the families that have adopted organic farming practices. Earlier, large medical expenses have been incurred due to the frequent occurrence of diseases consequent upon the application of large quantities of chemicals in the agricultural land. However, under organic farming, the application of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides and the other chemicals which create a lot of health problems, have been completely avoided and therefore, there has occurred a large reduction in the medical expenses for the families that have adopted organic farming. It has been generally observed that organic farming is eco friendly and conducive to human health keeping the soil and water away from pollution.

Another observation made in the survey has been with respect to the improvement in the quality of life due to the adoption of organic farming. The income saved through a reduction in the medical expenses, could be utilized for acquiring better amenities of life which improved the living standards of the people. Again, different factors like improvement in the quality of product, increase in the yearly production and the better health conditions have all contributed to the improvement in the physical quality of life of the people who have adopted organic farming practices. The farmers got more income through premium prices for their better quality products and also through an increase in the quantity of yearly production both leading to higher standard of living and improvement in the physical quality of life of the organic farmers.

Under the organic farming, as the chemical fertilizers and other chemicals arc completely avoided, a lot of diseases can be kept away which leads to a decrease in the medical expenses and improvement in the

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health conditions of the people who have- adopted organic farming thereby leading to an improvement in the physical quality of life of the people. The table 6.3 below shows the average percentage increase in the quality of life of the people due to the adoption of organic farming.

Table No 6.3 Improvement in the Quality of Life

Improvement in Number of quality of life families (percentage ) below 10 12 10-15 40 15-20 32 20 - 25 14 25 - 30 Total 100 Source: Primary Data Collected through field survey

The field survey conducted among 100 families which have adopted organic farming has shown that the physical quality of life of the people has improved as a result of the adoption of organic farming practices. There has been an average 15.2 percent increase in the quality of life of the people after the adoption of organic farming in the Thiruvarur District.

It has been observed in the field survey that there existed an apparent relationship between the reduction in the medical expenses and the improvement in the quality of life of the people in the locality. The reduction in the medical expenses has been a factor leading to an improvement in the quality of life of the people. However, in order to 217

understand whether the reduction in medical expenses and the improvement in the quality of life of the people are statistically related, chi square test of independence has been used as shown below.

The null hypothesis formulated has been as follows:- Ho = Reduction in medical expenses and Improvement in the quality of life of the people are independent. Hi = Reduction in medical expenses and improvement in the quality of life of the people are not independent. —> Improvement in the quality of life

Table No 6.4 (Chi-square Table)

0- 10 10-20 20-30 Total

7 9 3 0-30 19 E = 22.8 E= 13.68 E = 3.04 4 9 30-60 53 E = 47.52 66 E = 7.92 E= 10.56 1 4 60-90 10 E = 10.8 15 E = 1.80 E = 2.40

Total 12 72 16 100 x2 = (o – E)2 / E = 9.77 + 1.60 + 0.0005 + 1.94 + 0.63 + 0.23 + 0.355 + 0.059 + 1.06 = 15.6445

The table value of chi-square, for a table with degree of freedom equal to 4 at 5% level of significance, is 9.49 while the observed chi- square value has been 15.6445. Since the calculated chi-square value has been much greater than the table value, we reject the null hypothesis and

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accept the alternative hypothesis. Therefore, it may be concluded that the reduction in the medical expenses and the improvement in the quality of life of the people in the locality are related. We may take the conclusion from the above analysis that the reduction in medical expenses consequent upon the adoption of organic farming has definitely improved the physical quality of life of the people in the Thiruvarur District.

Again, it has been observed in the field survey that the occurrence of pests and plant diseases has decreased as a result of the adoption of organic farming practices which ultimately led to the improvement in the quality of the product and increase in the quantity of yearly production. The table 6.5 below shows the percentage decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases as observed in the field survey conducted among 1(x)-100 families which have adopted organic farming.

Table No 6.5-Decrease in the Occurrence of Pests and Plant Diseases

Percentage decrease Number of families

0-5 1 5-10 3 10-15 26 15-20 28 20 - 25 36

25 - 30 6 Total 100 Source: Primary Data Collected through field survey From the table no 6.5 , it may be understood that there has been a reduction in the occurrence of pests and plat diseases as a result of the adoption of the organic fanning in the Thiruvarur District. There has been an average 18.15 percent decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases due to the adoption of the organic farming by the small tea growers in the locality.

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As a result of the adoption of organic farming the paddy quality has increased considerably which has led to the improvement in the quality of the product. Improved quality product fetched premium price for the produce of the farmers. The table 6.6 below shows the percentage increase in the quality of product due to the adoption of organic farming practices in the locality

Table No 6.6 Improvement in the Quality of Product

Number of Percentage increase families 0- 10 8 10 - 20 28 20 - 30 40 30 - 40 16 40 - 50 4 50 - 60 4 Source: Primary Data collected through field survey.

It may be understood from the table no 6.6 that there has been an increase in the quality of tea production as a result of the adoption of organic farming. There has been an average 24.2 percent increase in the quality of tea produced due to the switch over to the organic farming practices by the farmers in the locality.

In the study, it has been observed that there existed an apparent relation between the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the improvement in the quality of product under organic farming and that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases has contributed to the improvement in the quality of product- We have found

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it essential to test statistically whether the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the improvement in the quality of product are independent or not. For this the statistical tool of chi-square test has been applied. The null hypothesis has been formulated as

Ho : Decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the improvement in the quality of product are independent. The alternative hypothesis has been as follows :- Hi : Decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the improvement in the quality of product are not independent. —> Improvement in the quality of product

Table No 6.7 ( Chi-square Table )

0-20 20-40 40-60 Total

0- 10 1 2 1 4 E = 1.44 E = 2.24 E = 0.32 10 - 20 9 41 4 54 E= 19.44 E = 30.24 E = 4.32 20 - 30 26 E = 15.12 13 3 42 E = 23.52 E = 3.36 Total 36 56 S 100

x2 = (o – E)2 / E E= 0.13 + 0.24 + 1.45 + 5.61 + 3.83 + 0.32 + 7.82 + 4.71 + 0.36 = 24.47

The chi-square table value for a table with the degree of freedom equal to 4 at 5% significance level is 9.49 while the observed value of chi-square has been 24.47. Since the observed value has been much higher than the table value, we have rejected the null hypothesis and

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accepted the alternative hypothesis. It may be noted that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the improvement in the quality of product arc not independent. Therefore, it may be concluded that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases under organic farming, has contributed to an improvement in the quality of production in tea in the locality.

Further, it has been observed in the survey that there has been an increase in the quantity of yearly production under organic farming mainly due to the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases. The table 6.8 below shows the percentage increase in the quantity of yearly production due to the adoption of organic farming practices.

Table No 6.8 Increase in the Yearly Production

Percentage Number of increase families 0-5 15 5 - 10 26 10- 15 30 15-20 18 20 - 25 11 Total 100 Source: Primary Data

It is understood from the table no 6.8 that there has been an increase in the yearly production as a result of the adoption of organic farming practices. There has been an average 11.7 percent increase in the yearly production after the adoption of organic farming by the farmers in the Thiruvarur District. It has been found in the study that the decrease in the 222

occurrence of pests and plant diseases has contributed to such an increase in the quantity of yearly production. Now it became essential to test statistically whether the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the increase in the quantity of yearly production are independent or not independent. For this, the statistical tool of chi-square has been applied to the collected data.

Table No 6.9 ( Chi-square table )

0- 10 10-20 20-30 Total

0- 10 1 2 1 4 E = 1.64 E = 1.92 E = 0.44 10-20 9 41 4 54 E = 22.14 25.92 E = 5.94 20-30 31 5 6 42 E = 17.22 20.16 E = 4.62

Total 41 4S 11 100

X2 = 1(0 *E)2 E = 0.25 + 0.003 + 0.71 + 7.79 + 0.77 + 0.63 + 11.02 + 11.40 + 0.41 = 32.983

The chi-square table value for a table with degree of freedom equal to 4 at 5% level of significance is 9.49 while the observed chi-square value has been 32.983. Since, the observed chi-square value is much greater than the table value; we reject the null hypothesis and accept the alternative hypothesis. It may be seen from the above analysis that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the increase in

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the quantity of yearly production under organic farming arc related. Therefore, it may be concluded that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases has led to an increase in the quantity of yearly production of the organic farmers in the locality.

Further, it has been observed in the survey that there has been an overall Decrease in the cost of cultivation as a result of the adoption of organic farming practices. The table 6.10 below shows the percentage decrease in the overall cost of cultivation as observed in the survey.

Table No 6.10 Decrease in the overall cost of cultivation Percentage decrease Number of families in cost of cultivation below 10 15 10- 15 26 15-20 34 20 - 25 16 25 - 30 4 30 and above 2 Total 100 Source: Primary Data collected through field survey.

From the table no 6.10 it may be understood that there has been large decrease in the cost of cultivation due to the adoption of organic farming by the people in the Thiruvarur District. There has been an average 15.9% decrease in the overall cost of cultivation as a result of organic fanning in the locality. Given though, there has been an overall reduction in the cost of cultivation under organic farming due to the complete avoidance of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides and chemicals for weed 224

control, it has been observed in the survey that the labor charge has increased considerably under the organic farming. As chemicals are avoided under organic farming for weed control, there has been the manual removal of weeds and as a result the labor efforts and labor charges in cultivation have increased. The table 6.11 shows the percentage increase in the labor cost incurred by the farmers due to the adoption of organic farming, as observed in the survey.

Table No 6.11 Percentage increase in the labour cost

Percentage decrease in Number of labor cost families 0-10 12 10-20 20 20 - 30 24 30 - 40 36 40 - 50 4 50 and above 4 Total 100 Source : Primary Data collected through field survey.

As may be understood from the table no 6.11, there has been much increase in the labor charge in the cultivation due to the adoption of organic farming practices. There has been an average 26.2% increase in the labor cost under organic farming and it has been due to manual removal of weeds which required more number of labor units in the cultivation. Moreover, under organic fanning more regular care and attention have to be given to the plants for which more number of laborers have been required. Thus, it may be concluded that the adoption of organic farming practices have been advantageous to the farmers in particular and to the society in general. Organic farming has led to a

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reduction in overall cost of cultivation, a decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases, an improvement in the quality of produce, an increase in the quantity of the yearly production and a reduction in the medical expenses by way of an environment and eco friendly cultivation .all of which have led to an improvement in the quality of life of farmers in the rural areas. SHG has been very successful in propagating and popularizing organic farming and in prompting the small and the marginal farmers of the Thiruvarur District in particular and the Thiruvarur District in general to adopt the organic farming practices.

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CHAPTER - VII SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND CONCLUSIONS

The present study has been carried out to examine the role of NGOs in the economic and community development of Tamilnadu. In order to study the development role of NGOs in Tamilnadu, the case study method was adopted and the case study of Women SHGs. One of the prominent and major NGOs in Tamilnadu working in the Thiruvarur District was undertaken. The economic and community development interventions of the NGOs are mostly required in those places and localities which remained socially and economically most backward.

The reviews of the earlier works relating to the NGO interventions in the development scenario and in the related areas inside and outside the state of Tamilnadu, have been presented in the second chapter. The dimensions of NGO interventions as disclosed by the various schemes and their views on the role played by NGOs in various realms like community development, sustainable development, environmental protection, development of human resources and women development were described in this chapter along with the research gap.The establishment and growth of Women SHGs, as a local NGO. Has been dealt with in a historical perspective in the third chapter. Also, as a local NGO, the importance- of SHG in the community development interventions in the Thiruvarur District has been described in this chapter.

The community development interventions of SHG in the Thiruvarur District relating to the micro finance operations under the Women SHGs network, the micro enterprises development, human

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resources development and housing and social welfare have been discussed in the fourth chapter. In order to study the significance of SHG in the Head of community development, regression models were fitted and the testing of hypotheses and one tailed and two tailed ‘t’ tests were applied to the secondary data on such activities of SHG and as a result the following findings were made in the study.

FINDINGS 1. There occurred a more or less regular increase in the number of Women SHGs promoted by SHG from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 and a total of 1702 Women SHGs have been promoted under SHGs during this period. SHG could expand its network of Women SHGs in the Thiruvarur District during this period primarily because of the fact that SHGs has been a local NGO and it could very well establish and maintain the touch with the people at the grass roots level. The growth of the SHGs network under SHGs was found regular and significant compared to that of NHGs under the Thiruvarur District.

2. The Women SHGs under SHG were able to promote thrift among the lowest strata rate of the population in the Thiruvarur District and they have mobilized a total of Rs. 135.37 lakhs as small savings from the lowest strata of the people in the Thiruvarur District from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. 'The growth of small savings by the Women SHGs under SHG from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 has been proved significant statistically by applying the simple regression model and the two tailed ‘t’ test of significance of regression coefficient. 3. The Women SHGs have been successful in disbursing micro credit or small loans among their members required for the generation of

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employment and income in the locality through the mica) enterprises development and self employment. The growths of internal lending by the Women SHGs have been found significant over the years 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The internal lending was Rs.0.85 lakhs in 2005-2006 which increased to Rs.83.5 lakhs in the year 2012-2013 while it was Rs.66.65 lakhs in 2012-2013.This growth was proved statistically significant by applying the tools of simple regression model and the two tailed Y test of significance. The Women SHGs have disbursed an amount of Rs.583 lakhs of micro credit among their members from 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 of which the internal lending stood at Rs.265.15 lakhs. Again, the micro credit disbursed by the Women SHGs has been found significantly greater than that of the cooperative banks in the Thiruvarur District (Rs.70.262 lakhs) by applying the one tailed *t“ test of the sample mean values of the Women SHGs and the cooperative banks, assuming equal variances. 4. By 2012-2013, the Women SHGs under SHGs could achieve 100% linkage with the banks which has helped the uninterrupted flow of micro credit among the lowest strata of the population in the locality. At the same time, the NHGs sponsored by the Government of Tamilnadu could achieve only 29.92% linkage rate with the banks. By applying the one tailed ‘t’ test of the mean values of the linkage rates of SHG and NHGs the linkage rates of Women SHGs under SHG have been proved to be significantly greater than that of NHGs.

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5. The Women SHGs under SHGs have been found effectively monitoring and managing the repayment of small loans availed by their members. The repayment rate on small loans by the members of Women SHGs under SHGs has been 99% in 2012-2013 which is slightly higher than that of members of NHGs (98.1% in 2012- 2013) but much higher than that of the cooperative banks ( 58.14% in 2012-2013). The repayment rates on the micro credit disbursed by the cooperative banks have been compared and tested using the ANOVA single factor test and found that the repayment rates of different cooperative banks arc unequal. Again, using the one tailed Y test of two sample mean values of the repayment rates of SHGs and the cooperative banks, it was found that the repayment rate of Women SHGs have been significantly higher than that of cooperative banks. 6. The Women SHGs under SHG could bring a very large number of poor people under the insurance coverage and thus could ensure social security to the lowest strata of the population in the Thiruvarur District. In 2012-2013, 2642 poor families were brought under the insurance scheme with a total premium remitted equal to Rs.5.62 lakhs and the claims distributed equal to Rs. 6.48 lakhs. Even though, the mean values of premium remitted and the claims distributed have been found statistically not different in the application of the two tailed Y test, the amount of claims distributed has been, on an average, greater than the premium amount remitted by the SHG member families. By comparing the mean values of premium remitted and claims distributed, it has been found that the claims distributed have been in tune with the premium remitted.

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7. SHG has organized capacity development programmes on a regular basis under Micro Enterprises Development and Human Resources Development under sponsorship of government and the other national level and state level agencies, which have promoted rural entrepreneurship and generated more employment and income in the locality. It has been found that 1092 people participated in skill training under Capacity Development Programme from 1997-9S to 2005-2006, 538 participated in the Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme, 148 in Home Nurse Training and 779 people participated in the Enterprise Development Programme. Thus, there has been effective utilization of the funds from the government and other channels by SHG for the benefit of the lowest strata of the population in the locality. 8. SHG has organized programmes for awareness generation and skill training on a regular basis for the benefit of the people in the lowest strata in the locality and most of these programmes have been organized with the government sponsorship. It has been found that 3290 people have participated in the training programmes and 165295 people have participated in the Awareness generation programmes under Human Resources Development organized by SHG from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013. All of the above programmes have been conducted with the sponsorship of government or other similar agencies. Thus. SHG could enable the lowest strata of population to avail the benefits of the government funds and programmes for community development and also the funds and assistance from other development agencies. 9. SHG has undertaken several projects and programmes for enhancing the social welfare of the lowest strata of the population in the locality. SHG has constructed 1504 sanitary projects from

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2005-2006 to 2012-2013. The Society has constructed 1326 houses for the poor, constructed 2513 water tanks for rain water harvesting and undertook 730 projects for the supply of drinking water, which all benefited the purest people in the locality. A total of 9289 people in the locality became beneficiaries of the monthly aid programmes of SHGs from 1997-9S to 2005-2006. Thus, SHGs has been found materializing the basic objectives of providing social and community development services to the lowest strata of the population in the Thiruvarur District, for which SHGs was basically constituted. The contributions made by SHGs in the field of Housing and Social Welfare, have been compared with that of the Grama Panchayats in the Thiruvarur District. On an average, a Grama Panchayat could construct 583 sanitary projects, 344 houses and 31 drinking water schemes and the monthly aid programmes benefited 515 people from the year 2000-01 to 2012-2013. It has been found that the contributions of SHG significantly higher than that of the Grama Panchayats in the field of Housing and Social Welfare.

Thus, the results of the analysis of data on the community development interventions of SHG disclosed that SHG. as a local NGO, has been highly successful in providing social, economic, and the community development and welfare services to the lowest strata of the population in the Thiruvarur District.

Interventions of SHG in the women development and empowerment have been discussed in the fifth chapter. SHG has organized several skill development and training programmes for poor women under various schemes of Government of India. NABARD. Government of Tamilnadu and the other development agencies. The

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largest skill training programme organized by SHG has been under Rastriya Mahila Khosh (RMK). It has been found in the study that out of 1501 poor women who participated in the various capacity development and skill training programmes, 596 women were placed in micro enterprises units, self employment schemes and other employments. It has been shown that the greatest achievement of SHGs in the field of women development was the organization of the vast network of women SHGs.

Three general hypotheses have been formulated in the study relating to the development interventions of SHG and the results of the study have been used to prove the hypotheses. The first hypothesis is that "SHG has been more efficient in providing the economic and community development services to the poor and weaker sections of the population." This hypothesis seeks to establish that SHG is more efficient in providing the community development services to the poor than Grama Panchayats and the co-operative banks engaged in the similar activities. The results of the study based on the statistical analysis of data and the comparative study pointed out that SHG was more efficient in providing the economic and community development services to the poor and the weaker sections of population by mobilizing the small savings and disbursing micro credit compared to that of NHGs movement, by disbursing more- small loans to the poor compared to that of the cooperative banks in the locality and by undertaking more projects and programmes for the welfare of the poor people compared to that of Grama Panchayats in the Thiruvarur District.

The second hypothesis formulated is that “SHG has been playing a crucial role in achieving the economic and community development by creating awareness among the people, promoting employment, self employment and the income generating activities through micro finance, micro enterprises development, human resources development and by promoting the women development and empowerment”. This hypothesis seeks to establish that SHG is largely involved in equipping and

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empowering the poor, especially women, for development. The study found that under the Micro Enterprises Development SHG organized skill training from 2005-2006 to2012-2013 in which 1092 people participated, Home Nurse training from 2005-2006-to 2008-2009in which 148 women participated, Rural Entrepreneurship Development Programme from 2007-2008 to 2012-2013 in which 538 people participated and Enterprises Development Programme from 2008-2009 to 2012-2013 in which 779 people participated. The Index of people's participation in Micro Enterprise Development has shown an upward trend as explained under the Index Wise Description. Under the Human Resources Development. SHG organized the Awareness Generation Programme from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 in which 165295 people participated and Skill Training from the year 2005-2006 to2012-2013 in which 3290 rural people participated. SHG constructed 1504 sanitary projects, 1326 houses for the poor and 2513 water tanks for rain water harvesting and undertook 730 drinking water schemes and monthly aid programmes benefiting 9289 people in the Thiruvarur District from the year 2005-2006 to 2012-2013 and thus. SHG play a crucial role in economic and community development.

The third hypothesis formulated in the study is that “SHG has been able to better the quality of life and living standards of the poor and the marginalized people by popularizing and promoting eco friendly organic farming practices in agriculture”. It was found in the study that SHG has been actively popularizing and promoting organic farming in the Thiruvarur District and a total of 705 small farmers, with a land area of 729.6 hectares, have adopted organic farming practices. The results of the study have shown that there has been a sharp decline in the medical expenses, in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and in the overall cost of cultivation which all led to improvement in the quality of product, increase in the quantity of output, a better quality of life and higher living

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standards on the part of the families that have adopted organic farming. Suggestions

The case study of Women SHGs undergone for examining the role of Non-governmental Organizations’ ( NGOs )in the economic and community development of Tamilnadu, has revealed that NGOs have great organizational flexibility, informal work style and the ability to organize economic and community development best suited to the needs and requirements of the people in the locality in which they are working. The economic and community development approach from any institution or agency should need based and civil society based so that the poverty alleviation and employment generation may materialize in a better way. On the basis of the findings and conclusions of the present study, the following suggestions have been made for the study.

SUGGESTIONS 1. The various programmes and activities organized for economic and community development can succeed only if there is the involvement and participation of the people for whom they are meant and therefore, the involvement and participation of beneficiary people must he ensured while organizing and implementing such programmes. 2. NGOs are more local in nature and they have the touch with the people at the local and grass roots level as a result of which they are able to organize the involvement and participation of the people in every development programme. Therefore. NGOs may he largely involved in the implementation of the various development programmes and projects so that they can become the most successful. 3. The effective identification of the beneficiaries is essential for the success of each development programme and the NGOs can best

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identify such beneficiaries as they have the touch with the people at the grass roots level. Therefore, the involvement of NGOs in the identification of beneficiaries is highly desirable while implementing the various development programmes. 4. The various development programmes and projects meant for the poor become successful only when they are suited to local conditions and utilize the local know how. NGOs are very efficient in organizing and implementing development programmes and projects best suited to local conditions and utilizing local know how. Therefore NGOs may be involved in the planning and implementation of such programmes and projects. 5. NGOs have great organizational flexibility and an informal work style which help the speedy implementation of development programmes and projects and therefore, the involvement of NGOs in the execution of development programmes and projects is desirable to make them more successful. 6. NGOs arc cost effective and efficient service providers and they shall he involved in the implementation of development projects so that they can effectively monitor in the creation of communal assets which is essential for the economic and community development on a sustained basis. 7. NGOs shall he increasingly involved in the programmes and activities that are intended to bring about the women empowerment and development as they have been effectively promoting the organization of Women SHGs.

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CONCLUSION Self-help groups are comprised of people who share the same problem, life situation or Crisis. Members provide emotional support to one another; learn new ways to cope, discover strategies for improving their condition, and help others while helping themselves There occurred a regular increase in the number of women SHGs promoted by SHG and the number of women SHGs increased from 35 in 2005-2006 to 1702 in 2012-2013. These Women SHGs have been able to contribute to women development and empowerment in a big way through micro finance operations and other community development services. It has been shown in the study that there occurred an average 24% betterment in the quality of product as a result of adopting organic farming practices. Using the chi square test of independence it has been statistically proved that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the increase in the quality of product on account of organic farming, have been highly associated and that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases have worked behind the improvement in the quality of product. The study revealed that there has been an average of 11.7% increase in the yearly production after the adoption of organic farming practices in Thiruvarur District.

Using the chi square test of independence it has been proved statistically that the decrease in the occurrence of pests and plant diseases and the increase in the quantity of yearly production have been highly associated. It has been pointed out in the study that there has been an average 15.9% decrease in the overall cost of cultivation due to the adoption of organic farming practices in the Thiruvarur District. It has also been pointed out in the study that there has been an average 26.2% increase in the labour cost as a result of adopting organic farming

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practices and it has been due to the adoption of manual weed control under organic farming in the place of use of chemicals in controlling weed.

The study has concluded that the organic farming practices have been highly beneficial to farmers and society and have led to eco friendly cultivation, conservation of natural resources and protection of soil and water from pollution.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Vasant Desai. (2008). Rural Development Strategies and Programmes. Vol. - II. Himalaya Publishing House, New Delhi, page 23. 2. R Venkattakumar and et.al, (2012), People’s Participation in Watershed Management,. Vol. 48. No. 11. August 2012. page 27.3. 3. Prof. Muhammad Yunus won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2010 4. G S Gireesh Kumar. (2011). Micro-Finance in India - -A Viable Option ForVulnerable Sections, Indian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research. Vol. I. No.2, 2(X)5.Kurushctra. April. 2011. 5. A K Pat. (2012), Kudumbasree : Poverty Eradication Mission in Tamilnadu. Economic and Political Weekly. November 26.2005, pp 4991 - 4993. 6. "Ibid. page 4992. 7. The 5 cooperative banks selected on the basis of availability of data have been Kokkayar. Pcruvanthanam. Malanad. Upputhara and Vandippcriyar.Sec the note " above. 8. Dr. M Soudarapandiyan. Micro finance for Rural 1 entrepreneurs : Issues and Strategies. Kurushetra. September 2(X)6. page 14. 9. Ibid. 10. C Gangaiah. B Nagaraja and C Vasudcvulu Naidu. Impact of Self Help Groups on Income and Employment : A Case Study. Kurushetra. March 2006. page 18. 11. B Vijayachandran Pillai and V Harikumar. Self Help Groups in Tamilnadu. Kurushetra. July 2009. page 30. 12. Ahmad Shamshad. NGOs And Development of Rural Entrepreneurship, Kurushetra. March 2012. page 27.

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13. I'hc government has set up autonomous bodies like Central Social Welfare Board and Indian Council of Social Welfare. 14. NGOs like ACTION AID, OXFAM and Christian Children Fund belong to this category. 15. “They include NGOs like SFWA, AWAKE (Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Karnataka). 16. RUDSim (Rural Development And Self Employment Training Institute) and Indian Institute of Youth Welfare (IIYW) of Maharashtra belong to this category. See references 24 and 25 above. 17. M Sandhya Sridevi. Role of HRD in the New I Economic Environment. Southern Economist, August 2(X)6, page 8. 18. M Ramachandra Gowda and E A Paramcswara Gupta. 11R1) : Requiring Today Innovative Techniques, Southern Economist, November 2(X)6. page 15. 19. M L Gupta and Namita Gupta. Economic Empowerment of Women Through Women SHGs Kurushetra. February 2012, page 23. 20. B Vijayanchandran Pillai and V Harikumar. Self Help Groups in Tamilnadu. Kurushetra. July 2(XXS. page 30. 21. C Gangaiah. B Nagaraja and (’ Vasudevalu Naidu. Impact of Self Help Groups on Income and Employment. Kurushetra. March 2009, page 18. 22. C S Arneja and Sandeepika Khara. Watershed Development Approach For Sustainable Agricultural Development. Kurushetra. July 2005, page 26. 23. A Prasad. Problems in Indian Agriculture : Measures to Increase Farm Productivity and Profitability, Southern Economist, July 2006, page 33.

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24. S Gurusamy, Role of Voluntary Agencies in Social Change in NGOs and Development The Indian Scenario(Fd). Rawat Publications, New Delhi. 2004, page 82. 25. A K Pat. Black Spots in Tamilnadu’s Socio-Economic Scene, Economic and Political Weekly, June 11.2005, page 2392 26. Ihid. page 2393. 27. Sidharaju V G. S Rajcndran. Organic Farming System : Issues and Concerns. Kurushetra. July 2006. page 20. 28. Mihir Shah. Overhauling Watershed Programme : Towards Reforms, Economic and Political Weekly, July 8-15. 2006, page 2981. 29. A Vaidhyanathan, Restructuring Watershed Development Programme. Economic and Political Weekly, July 8-15.2006, page 2984. 30. Ashok Kumar V, Report on “vis-avis banking with the poor” Andhra Bank performance of SBLP, 2009 31. Banerjee, A., & Newman, A. (1994). Poverty, incentive and development. American Economic Review 84(2). 32. Barry, Nancy, Armacost, Nicola and Kawas Celina (1996) "Putting Poor people's Economics at the Center of Urban Strategies," Women's World Banking, New York. 33. Barry, N.(1995), "The Missing Links: Financial System that Works for the Majority," Women's World Banking, New York. 34. Basu & K. Jindal (Eds.), Microfinance emerging challenges. Tata McGraw Hill 35. Baydas, M. M., Graham, D. H., & Valenzuela, L. (1997, August). Commercial banks in microfinance: New actors in the microfinance world. 36. Micro Enterprise Best Practices.

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Webliography: 1. www.SHGgateway.org, 2. www.apmas.org 3. www.microfinancegateway.org 4. www.nabard.org 5. www.rbi.org.in, 6. www.nic.in,

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APPENDIX - I 1. Questionnaire for SHGs

WOMEN SELF HELP GROUPS AT THIRUVARUR DISTRICT-A CASE STUDY

Research Scholar: Mr. K. GANDHI, M.Com., M.Phil Research Advisor: Dr. N. UDAYAKUMARI, M.Com., M.B.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.,

I 1. Name of the SHG:

2. Total no of members:

3. Age:

S.No 15-25 26-35 36-50 50&above No of members

4. Residential address:

5. Nature of occupation: 1. Agribased work :

2. others :

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II 1. Whether full time or part time Worker: 2. No of hours per day: 3. No of days per week working: 4. Annual income: 5. Other sources of income:

III. PARTICULARS OF WORKING PROCESS:

IV.ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Cost Per Total Estimated S.No Item No Item Value Life 1. Savings Internal lending SHG linked to banks Total credit Bank loan Repayment

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V.HUMAN RESOUCRE DEVOLOPEMNT

Private S.No Item Govt Aid Own Risk Others Aid No of house owned Drinking water schemes No of sanitary projects No of families insured No of trainees

VI .Are you benefited by your membership in the SHGs ? i) ii) Are benefited grama panchayat sanitary provision are you availing bank loan.

VII .GENERAL i) Are you interested in your job?

ii) Do you get sufficient assistant and guidance from the government agencies? YES NO iii) Suggestions to increase economical development SHGs

YES NO

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VIII. SOCIAL BACKGROUND

S. Relationship Age Educati Economi Monthly Off No With on c Status Income Seasonal Groups (Rs) Income (Rs)

XI.OCCUPATIONAL BACKGROUND S. Nature Initial Availing Duration Marketing Total Income No of Invesment Bank For Income Pergroups Work Loan Production

X.INVESMENTS IN ORGANIC FARMS

Estimated Cost Estimated Per Crop Estimated S.No Item No. Total Sales Cultivation Duration Volume (Rs.) 1. Paddy 2. Ground nut 3. Black gram 4. Gingili 5. Sugarcane

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XI.OPERATIONAL COST PER CROP

S.NO ITEM OF COST TOTAL AMOUNT 1. Land cultivation 2. Irrigation 3. Seeds and organic manure 4. Salary and wages 5. Harvesting expenses

XII.PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY OF THE CROP perio time tur no of transpo high lengt maximum d duratio n mont rt yielding h of output/harvest n ove hs expense techniq land ing r s ue Seaso ns Off- Seaso ns

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XIII.FINANCE

s.no sources of amount rate of purpose of amount out finance interest loan standing rs. 1. Personal 2. SHGs fund 3. Commercial bank 4. Cooperative society 5. Money render 6. Others

XIV.DO YOU GET SUFFICIENT FINANCE WITHOUT DIFFICULTY YES NO

XV. PROBLEMS IN GETTING FINANCE i)

ii)

iii)

XVI. ARE YOU BENEFITED BY YOUR SHGs:

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ISSN: 2347-3215 Volume 1 Number 2 (2013) pp. 117-122 www.ijcrar.com

Marketing Strategies of Women Self Help Groups

K.Gandhi1* and N.Udayakumari2

1Department of Commerce, King Nandhivarman College of Arts and Science, Thellar, Tamilnadu, India 2Department of Commerce, ADM College for women (Autonomous), Nagapattinam‐611001, Tamilnadu, India

*Corresponding author e-mail: [email protected]

KEYWORDS ABSTRACT

Self help groups; NGOs; Self help groups (SHGs) are now engaging in business activities. They lack business and in marketing as for the first time they are engaging in business. If they are marketing activities; adequately trained with marketing knowledge, they can excel and in turn take Marketing our economy a global leader in this current situation of globalization. The NGOs who have formed the SHGs, The banks who financed the groups and Strategies; the Government agencies nurturing them must join hands in train the SHG Growth strategies. members in business and marketing activities and make them play globally.

Introduction

Self Help Group (SHG)

ASelf‐Help Group (SHG) is a registered or Development(IFAD). IFAD (1989) is quite unregistered group of micro entrepreneurs similar to SHG programme, which was having homogenous social and economic organised by an international social welfare back ground, voluntarily coming together agency. The head quarters of IFAD is to save regular small sums of money, situated in Rome. IFAD aimed at providing mutually agreeing to contribute to a subsidized individual loans to people below common fund and to meet their emergency poverty line for undertaking activities such needs on the basis of mutual help. as animal husbandry, horticulture, sericulture, khadi and handloom. Indian Origin of SHGs Bank played a key role in financing these schemes. The scheme was implemented in The basic idea of "SHG" scheme is derived 75 unions of 8 districts on a selective basis. from International Fund for Agricultural The IFAD project was successfully

117 completed in the year 1982. Keeping in predominant role and subsidy is an mind the positive results of this scheme, the enabling component. state Governments in India wanted to Under this scheme, financial assistance continue this scheme. So a separate wing may be given to individuals or groups was setup under social welfare department (Self‐help Groups) belonging to below for continuing this scheme. Now SHG is poverty line families. However, the being used as a major weapon in poverty emphasis will be on the Group approach. eradication. The SGSY envisages developing activity clusters by selecting about 10 key activities Formation and Promotion per block.

Now, SHGs are formed by NGOs, Goals Government agencies or Banks the three types of Self Help Promoting Institutions Self‐help groups are started by non‐profit (SHPIs). In India, Self Help Groups organizations (NGOs) that generally have represent a unique approach to financial broad anti‐poverty agendas. Self‐help intermediation. The approach combines groups are seen as instruments for a variety access to low‐cost financial services with a of goals including empowering women, process of self management and developing leadership abilities among poor development for the women who are SHG people, increasing school enrolments, and members. SHGs are formed and supported improving nutrition and the use of birth usually by NGOs or by Government control. Financial intermediation is agencies. Linked not only to banks but also generally seen more as an entry point to to wider development programs, SHGs are these other goals, rather than as a primary seen to confer many benefits, both objective. This can hinder their economic and social. development as sources of village capital, as well as their efforts to aggregate locally The Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar controlled pools of capital through Yojana (SGSY) was launched on April federation, as was historically 1999 as the single self‐employment accomplished by credit unions. To achieve programsinthe place of previous poverty their goal of financial self contentment the elevation programs like IRDP, DWACRA, groups are now engaged in manufacturing etc. and marketing activities.

The SGSY is a holistic program and the Production Activities by SHGs objective of SGSY is to bring the assisted poor families (Swarozgaris) above the SHG members create a large number of poverty line. Under SGSY poor families products, some of which compete with are organized into Self‐help groups (SHGs) branded/market‐established products in through the process of social mobilization. terms of quality. Some products are SGSY ensures training and capacity agarbathies, candles, scented candles, building and provides income‐generating pickles, soaps, handmade paper, paper assetsthroughamixofbankcreditand mesh articles, toys, handicrafts, wood Government subsidy. It is a credit linked carvings, wooden furniture, etc. Some scheme. Here, the credit plays a groups near the towns also engage in production of readymade idly dosa dough

118 mix, readymade variety rice mix etc. Even are four types of market dominance some groups engage in agriculture, strategies: sericulture, prawn rearing and pond fish rearing. However, there is a lack in Leader advertising these products, which can be Challenger considered as an essential part for effective Follower marketing. The SHGs are far behind in Nicher marketing activities. They are to be educated in marketing activities. In the initial stage the SHG members may enter the market as market followers. They Marketing Activities by SHGs can slowly transform themselves to a challenger in course of time and finally The marketing activities of the SHGs are after gaining adequate strength they can far below the new standards set by become leaders. globalization. They only engage in direct marketing. They market their products Porter generic strategies only locally. They don t think of mass production and massive marketing globally. Strategy on the dimensions of strategic The packing of the finished products do not scope and strategic strength. Strategic attract the mass as other manufactured scope refers to the market penetration while products do. The SHGs don t even engage strategic strength refers to the firm s in advertising their products. They don t sustainable competitive advantage. The like to market their products to unknown generic strategy framework (porter 1984) persons. They target only known people, comprises two alternatives each with two relatives and other SHG members as their alternative scopes. These are customers. They don t try to market their Differentiation and low‐cost leadership products through the nearby shops. They each with a dimension of Focus‐broad or don t even put stalls in local shandys. Even narrow. some SHG women indulge in door to door marketing of their products. This provides Product differentiation (broad) less scope of sales and they end with lesser Cost leadership (broad) profits. Market segmentation (narrow)

Marketing Strategies While entering the competition, the SHG groups may possess a unique advantage of Marketing strategies may differ depending cost minimization. They while entering in on the unique situation of the individual market competition can become cost business. However there are a number of leaders. When they gain knowledge of all ways of categorizing some generic manufacturing strategies they can strategies. differentiate their products from that of others and also focus on product differentiation. Strategies based on market dominance Innovation strategies In market dominance strategy competitors are classified based on their market share or This deals with the firm's rate of the new dominance of an industry. Typically there product development and business model

119 innovation. It asks whether the company is few groups are engaged in manufacturing on the cutting edge of technology and activities such as paper cups, candles, business innovation. There are three types: agarbathies, handmade garments, wood carvings, etc. Some male groups engage in Pioneers wood carvings, food processing, sericulture Close followers etc. Diversification of products will Late followers certainly improve marketing of SHG products and make the group earn higher As the SHGs are just now entering the profits. market segment, they can only be late followers of innovative strategies. But in Even if the quality of SHG products course of time if they innovate they can competes with the products of large also become pioneers. They can make use manufacturing concerns, the former of their locality advantage to explore products lack attractive packing which product differentiation and be the best makes the buyer hesitant to buy such competitors of global products as products. The display of the product in the Mappillai Vinayagar Soda , Kali Mark market place must attract the buyers and and Bovento in the field of cool drinks must be at par with the packing standards who give tough competition to MNC of the competitors products. Not only the products. quality of the product but also the finishing Growth strategies and packing must be made attractive and be at par with that of the big company In this scheme we ask the question, How products. should the firm grow? There are a number of different ways of answering that The financing banks may take a lead to question, but the most common gives four provide marketing training to the SHG answers: members and thereby make them to build their own strategies to market their Horizontal integration products. This in turn will secure their Vertical integration asset structure also by lessening bank s Diversification NPAs. Intensification Such marketing training can also be given The SHGs under one umbrella of same by the governments through DRDA, IFAD NGO can have a horizontal integration in etc., which in turn will help the government marketing their products and reap the to reduce the economic imbalances. benefits of the integration. Even the national corporations are joining hands Like Khadi Bhavans, The government may with prominent MNCs and merge or create separate selling outlets exclusively amalgamate with them to ensure their for SHG products. This step will also survival in this global economy. reduce unemployment to a certain extent.

Suggestions to withstand global The products are mainly sold in the village marketing pressures by the SHGs of manufacture or at the most nearby towns. The SHGs mostly engage only in Self help groups mainly concentrate in direct marketing, and this is the reason for homemade articles like pickles and only a

120 local marketing. The market area should be temporary stalls at places targeting increased at least to the state level. members of the salaried‐class and tourists.

Lack of advertisement is one of the major The Government sanctioned Rs.33 lakhs reasons for poor marketing. Government for the marketing of SHG products. can take steps to propagate the SHG Twenty‐two groups erected 11 stalls and products through its own media free of cost displayed bags, napkins, snacks, terracota or with a little cost. items, dolls, cotton saris, jewels etc. The turnover of the first 4 days came to Like some agricultural products, Rs.45,000/‐ SHG members pitched tent at government may procure the finished Tirumalai Naick Mahal, Meenakshi goods from the SHGs and can take Amman Temple and Periyar Bus Stand. marketing in its control. This will bring a The success made the district authorities to vast change in the marketing of the think extending the plan to every taluk products and certainly will be a boon to the headquarters and villages also. SHG members. This innovative idea can be carried The government may take steps to provide throughout the nation and most SHGs will permanent stall for the SHG products in reap the benefit of easy marketing. every district in the Poomalai Shopping Complex which are situated in prominent Early this year a workshop was organized places in every district head quarters and at Tiruchi on marketing the products made rented by government agencies. by the women SHGs, organized by the Tamil Nadu Corporation for Development Some banks which provide credit linkage to of Women and Tiruchi District Supply and SHGs take steps to market the products Marketing Society at Poomalai commercial through trade fairs conducted by them in campus. The workshop was attended by a prominent places and provide stalls large number of women SHG members in exclusively for the products produced by the district who were engaged in making their SHG members. These stalls have handicraft items, soaps, jute bags, proved effective to fetch good orders from jewellery, paintings, textile designs, cities and towns. Even big shopping malls incense sticks, and brick making. They place orders with the SHGs and display the were made able to market their products products in their shops. The trade fairs effectively. conducted by the bankers may be increased. These types of workshops are a rare phenomenon and may be conducted district The governments also can conduct such wise to educate the SHG members in trade fairs exclusively for SHG products marketing which will in turn improve the and provide market for the products. If marketing of SHG products. they can fetch foreign orders it will also be useful to be overcome balance of pay Palmyra ‐ An NGO in Villupuram District deficits. has its own market place at Auroville a global village where there are more Mahalir Thittam, Madurai, this year came foreigners and foreign visitors. In this out with an innovative idea of erecting market place they market the products of

121 their SHGs. There are a wide range of balance of payment positions. This will products from paper cups, paper mesh toys, make our country a leader in a globalized agarbathies, candles, scented candles, economy. cotton knitted hankies, door mats, bathroom mats, towels, wood carvings, References wooden furniture, toys etc. All are produced by their SHG members. Darling Selvi .V.2005. Impact of self help group training Kisan World. The members of the groups are trained to 32(3): 31 engage in an activity. The finished Gurumoorthy, T.R., 2000. Self help products are purchased by the NGO by a groups empower rural women tie‐up arrangement and marketing is taken Kurukshetra, 48(5):36 care of by the NGO. The NGO even Kothari C.R., 2009. Research Methodology fetches foreign orders for the products. methods and Techniques. 2nd Revised edn.., New Age International (p) This type of marketing assistance can be Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. given by all NGOs to their SHG members. Narasiah .M.L., 2004. Women and micro This very well thrashes the fear of credit . Sonali Publications, New Delhi. marketing and the SHGs can engage in Nashi, S.K., 2004. Micro finance A innovative production of the products. study of stree shakti (SHG) Programmes Southern Economists The NGOs can also conduct trade fairs by .43(8.):9‐12 providing stalls for marketing for their Padmavathy, S., 2005. Employment SHG made products. Even these fairs can Generation Through SHG Sinrural be conducted statewide or nationwide by area. In Rural Labour Market ( having marketing collaboration within all M.Soundara Pandian (ed) ). Serials the NGOs acting in the state. If this comes Publications, New Delhi: true, the products of SHGs can give a tough Sathish .P Mainstreaming of India micro competition to the products of Multi‐ finance Economic and political National Companies. weekly.40(17): 17‐31 Singh, B.K., 2006. Women Empowerment Conclusions through self help groups. Adhyayan Publishers and Distributors. . New By following these strategies and Delhi. inculcating adequate knowledge of the markets and competitors, marketing is made easy for the SHGs. Once if the SHGs fetch the fruits of easy marketing, certainly they will engage in more production at lower costs and one day they can also become global players. As most of the village population is engaged in one SHG activity or the other, engaging them in business promotion and opening the gates of global markets for them will improve the economy of the country and improve our

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