PM Modi all praise for Barabanki women's mask feat

LUCKNOW: After praising the revival of the Sarahi Lake and Kalyani river in Barabanki during earlier sessions of Mann ki Baat, prime minister Narendra Modi had a special word of praise for women self-help groups in the district who are involved in the work of making masks.
The PM mentioned Barabanki’s Suman Devi, who, along with her friends, has started making khadi masks. Over time, more and more women have joined her in this initiative and they have made thousands of masks till now.
When Suman Devi, a resident of Gurudutt Khera of Triveniganj Block in Barabanki learnt that the PM had praised her, she was completely overcome with excitement.“By mentioning our initiative, the PM has given us encouragement and confidence. This is an example of his far sightedness,” she said.
Suman Devi had started the Ma Vaishno Self Help Group in August 2016, along with 11 other women including Subhadra Devi, Vimla Devi, Sunita and Renu. The block manager of the National Rural Livelihood Mission in their area helped them get training in making masks and growing chillies and tomatoes. This helped the women earn an income from their work and become self-sufficient.
Suman Devi said that there was a shortage of masks during the Covid-19 lockdown and when they read about the efforts being made by people during that time, they had the idea of making masks and helping people fight the infection. “We discussed the idea with the mission manager of the block and started sewing khadi masks at home. Initially we made 70 masks which we distributed to children, older people and needy people,” she said.
When the lockdown was eased, she added, they bought more cloth from the market and the SHG women started stitching more masks. Khadi is being used because the masks made from this can be washed and reused several times, she explained. Currently, 24 women are involved with this work as part of the SHG. Not only has this work helped all these women make a living but is also helping people resist the Corona infection, she said.
Suman Devi is the treasurer of this group and she has completed her BA. She said that they had received Rs 1.10 lakh in the community investment fund. From this, four members took Rs 12,500 each and started their own business. While Suman is making masks, Sunita has started chilli farming while Renu is selling tomatoes grown in a nursery. Mainavati has started a grocery store through which she is supplementing her family’s income. The fund given by the government is interest free but the members of the SHG have taken it on 1% interest so that the members can become empowered.
Barabanki district magistrate Dr Adarsh Singh tweeted his gratitude to the PM for praising the efforts of the SHG. “I express my gratitude to the PM for sharing the story of Suman Devi, a brave woman from a small village, with the entire country and for recognising and appreciating our efforts. This is the third time in a year when the PM has mentioned Barabanki in his Mann ki Baat,” he wrote.