SARAS Shakti Initiative for Rural Women Entrepreneurs

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Why in News

The **Ministry of Rural Development** launched the **SARAS Shakti Collection** and the **SARAS Shakti Coffee Table Book** at the **Rashtriya Gramin Vikas Sammelan (RGVS) 2026**.

This is a key branding and marketing initiative created under the **Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM)**.
It displays high quality goods produced by women **Self-Help Groups (SHGs)** to encourage rural business ownership and reach more buyers.

It seeks to empower women driven rural businesses by providing proper branding, product advertising, and stronger sales networks.
It aims to place SHG products in high end consumer and corporate markets while helping fulfill the goals of **Lakhpati Didis** and **Viksit Bharat**.

The curated collection highlights top quality handloom items, handicrafts, clothing, health products, home decorations, and regional food items made by women SHGs.
The **SARAS Shakti Coffee Table Book** records the wide variety, craft quality, real success stories, and market scope of women led businesses across India.
The market access platform improves the packaging, branding, online marketing, and institutional buyers network for items made in villages.
The program directly assists more than **10 crore women** connected with SHGs under **DAY-NRLM**, helping them build stable income sources and self reliance.

It boosts female business ownership, increases village earnings, and helps reach the national target of making **6 crore Lakhpati Didis by 2029**.
It raises public awareness of local handmade products, keeping traditional crafts alive while opening new national and corporate markets.