Kelly Kislaya

“These villagers earn about Rs 200-250 a day, which is not on a regular basis. In such a situation, they cannot afford to throw a party for the entire village. The villagers, however, do not allow their wedding to be solemnised until they are served food and drinks on the occasion. Thus, thousands of couples never get married.”

Instead of focusing on the regular crops, JSLPS encourages women to get involved in horticulture and plantation of medicinal plants. The specific occupation for them is suggested district-wise.

Now, the villagers of Bhinjpur have light bulbs, television and the latest electrical gadgets. The kitchens of their houses have been upgraded, and the women can be seen using mixers instead of mortar and pestles, and cooling water in fridges.

Khunti district in Jharkhand has been infamous for illegal poppy farming for a long time with dealers luring the villagers to cultivate opium, offering them huge amounts of money.

Villagers of Jharkhand are becoming richer every day through fish farming. The state which once produced only 14,000 metric tonnes of fish a year is now producing over 1.90 lakh metric tonnes.

With the help of the district administration, the women sent across 1,000 pairs of slippers to Kerala on August 27.

Tribal women of Jharkhand are using Mahua, which is popularly used for brewing country-made liquor, to make laddoos. This is not only helping them become self-dependent but also helping in the eradication of alcoholism from their village.