HT Correspondent
TEZPUR, July 18: Tezpur District Mahila Samiti, in collaboration with Eco Roots Foundation, New Delhi, organised a three-day training programme recently aimed at teaching women to produce handmade marketable products branded as ‘Jal Sparsh’. This initiative received financial support from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI).
The training programme aimed to empower 200 women from 10 villages in Sonitpur district, particularly targeting tribal women, by teaching them to create marketable products from water-extracted water hyacinth. This project, implemented in 5 states, has already conducted its first module training from April 27 to May 2 and concluded its second phase recently in Sonitpur district.
Related Posts:
‘Jal Sparsh’ is a livelihood project focusing on transforming waste into wealth. It involves training rural women, including 20% indigenous women, to extract water hyacinth from local ponds. This not only helps clear invasive species from water bodies but also provides economic opportunities for marginalized women. Participants are trained to process the raw material—cutting, cleaning, and drying the hyacinth stems—and subsequently crafting handmade products under the ‘Jal Sparsh’ brand.
Eco Roots Foundation successfully piloted this project in 7 villages of Noida, supported by SIDBI, and is now scaling it to reach 2000 women across 100 villages in 5 states: Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam. Assam and Bihar will contribute 400 indigenous beneficiaries to the project.
The training programme is overseen by Rangish Thakur, founder and chairman of Support Foundation, and master trainer Monica Kapoor, a trustee of Eco Roots Foundation, under the guidance of Rakesh Khatri, founder of Eco Roots Foundation.
Tezpur Mahila Samiti, the local partners in Assam, reported active participation from women beneficiaries, particularly from the Bodo tribe, who are committed to ensuring the project’s success.
