AGRICULTURAL INCOME GENERATING ACTIVITIES ADOPTED BY WOMEN OF SELF HELP GROUPS (SHGs) IN MANIPUR

Rural women play a major role in managing domestic affairs and outside their homes.  They work as a partner in the men's professions. As a measure to solve the problem of poverty with full cooperation of the rural poor and in sustainable way, our government and many NGOs have taken up the steps called self help groups (SHGs). Manipur has nine districts out of which only one district i.e., Imphal East was selected purposively. Following the stratified random sampling, 3% of SHGs from two categories of facilitating agencies i.e., ICM (Institute of Co-operative Management) and SWD (Social Welfare Department) were chosen with 5 SHGs having 80 members from ICM and 3 having 45 members from SWD for the study. To analyze the data, frequency and percentages were reckoned. A total of 13 agro-based activities carried out by the members of SHGs were identified in the present study. It was observed from study the majority of the members of SHGs (57.50% from ICM and 68.89% from SWD) were involved in poultry rearing followed by (41-25% from ICM and 48.89% from SWD) were found having piggery as agro-based activities for their livelihood and very limited number of women respondents were found having spices based enterprise (6.67%) and dairy farming (4.44%) in this category. Further, it was seen that majority of the SHGs formed by SWD (42.22%) liked to those activities as their 1st perferences which give high income whereas 28.89% SHGs (2nd  perference) liked to those activities where loss uncertainity exists.