Disha India
Micro Credit
Tailoring Shop Set Up with Loan Ensures Steady Income
Rajender S/o Hariram is a member of Nai Raha SHG, belongs to the Dalit community.
Rajendra began going to school as a child but had to drop out of school because his family was extremely poor. He studied till 8th grade. His parents separated and whatever assets they had got divided amongst the brothers. Bad luck had it that Rajendra received 2-bighas of barren land. It did not yield anything. Not having any alternate sources of income and with a piece of land that hardly yielded anything, Rajendra and his family situation went from bad to worse. Six years ago, Rajendra came across Dishas facilitators in his village who were spreading awareness regarding Self-Help-Groups and forming such groups in the villages. Rajendra and his friends also decided that they would form a group, and hence was born the group Nai Raha.
Income Status
Past: Rs 8,000 to 10,000 per annum
Present: Rs 36,000 to 40,000 per annum
The group members saved religiously and with the help of the facilitators, got their account opened in the banks. Disha facilitators contiuously supported and guided the group and over the years the group has a good consolidated savings and through interloaning they were able to meet many of their expenses. Recently, Rajendra borrowed a loan of Rs. 10,000 from Disha MFI and started a small tailoring shop. This initiative marked a new beginning for Rajendra. His business has started picking up and this has facilitated him to repay regularly. He is earning Rs 3,000-Rs 4,000 every month.
A vey confident Rajendra says that it was very convenient to borrow the loan from Disha MFI. There were very less legal formalities and the loan was in his hands within 4 days. The field facilitators explain the process of borrowing as well as the documentation very clearly. There is no doubt in mind while borrowing from Disha MFI. He also says that the staff at the headquarters is very cooperative. They give a repayment schedule, which makes it easy for us to know what amount we have to pay monthly. The installments also keep reducing every month hence the repayment becomes easier. This is a far cry from bowings from the bank where one just gets stuck in formalities, which extend over months sometimes. By the time one gets the loan, the utility has already passed. There is no use making that investment then. This process of borrowing from the banks chewed up all his time and energy and at the end of the day the loan is not of much use. Rajendra no longer depends on that barren piece of land for his survival. He has initiated an alternative source of income now and he will work hard to expand his shop.
Finance Helps Family Set Up Paper Plate Unit
Santosh is a resident of Behat. She has a husband and 3 children in the family. Santosh falls under the BPL (Below Poverty Line) criteria of the Government but hardly ever got any benefit of being in that category except 2 Bighas of land on patta. She cultivated some wheat and some fodder for a buffalo on this land and somehow managed to make the ends meet. Her husband used to sell spices and make some very little money and they have a very small shop that was not doing very poorly. The locality the live in is a very densely populated area with houses stacked together. They live in very unhygienic conditions. Hence the sickness rate was very high. Someone or the other was sick in the family and a majority of the income was squandered on medical bills. Santosh had to borrow from moneylender even for the treatment of ailments. Her relatives were living in the same conditions hence no one was able to lend any amount to them. The last resort was always the moneylender.
Income Status
Past: Rs 10,000 to 20,000 per annum
Present: Rs 30,000 to 40,000 per annum
The SHG heralded a ray of hope in her life. With the help of Disha facilitators, Santosh joined “Vikas SHG” in her village with the help of Disha facilitators. In a few years the SHG had a good amount of savings and they started interloaning as well as learnt to maintain the records and registers. Santosh borrowed small amounts from the SHG and slowly started fulfilling minor needs in the house. She also financed her husband’s business with borrowings from the SHG and also started adding more material for her shop. But since there was no sustainable source of income in the family, Santosh waned to make a good investment and have some alternate source of income.
She approached the nearby bank for a loan. The manager made her run all around the place for 15 days and yet Santosh could not get the loan. After some time, Santosh came to know about Disha MFI. She and her husband decided to buy a machine for making paper plates. The machine would cost something around Rs. 6400 and would be a sustainable source of income. Santosh borrowed a loan of Rs. 10,000 from Disha MFI. Within a day the documentation was done and she had the loan in her hand. She bought one machine and this is the only machine in her village till now. The business has been doing extremely well. Santosh gets raw material from Saharanpur city and transports the finished paper plates there.
The income is steadily increasing. She is able to invest some amount in the shop also which her husband looks after. Santosh now wants to buy more machines soon and maybe employ more people and start a small business in her house. She wants to send her children to an English medium school in Saharanpur city. She can now witness her dreams coming true, slowly and gradually.
Loan Enables Family to Start New Venture
Anita is a resident of Bijopura, a remote village in Saharanpur district. Anita’s husband works on other’s agricultural land and manages to put together a meager amount for the family’s survival. Moreover, income from Agricultural activities is seasonal, which renders the family without any money in the unproductive months. In these months, the family had to scramble even for two square meals a day. They had no assets and no savings and each day of life was a struggle for them.
Anita’s husband was trained in electrical work before marriage and had worked at several places but it was not enough for survival. Moreover, the shops were far away from his village and it cost a lot to travel. After marriage, he had to work in the nearby agricultural fields, which gave him not more than Rs. 500-600 a month. Anita and family were in troubled waters.
Income Status
Past: Rs 20,000 per annum
Present: Rs 30,000 to 40,000 per annum
Anita then became a member of “Khushboo SHG” which was being promoted and facilitated by Disha field workers. When savings accumulated, Anita could make small borrowings from the SHG but still she was looking for an opportunity wherein she or her husband could invest in something that will yield them income on a sustainable basis. Since Sher Singh (Anita’s Husband) was trained in electrical work like welding, making motors, repairing electrical appliances, they wanted to have an electric appliance and repairs shop of their own in the village. But the biggest obstacle was how to arrange for the finance. The SHG did have savings but from there Anita could not withdraw a big amount enough to invest in a shop. The answer to their dilemma came in the form of Disha MFI. In the group, Disha’s field facilitators informed people about Disha’s MFI programme, what kind of loans could members borrow, what was the criteria and how would it be repaid.
Anita says it is almost unbelievable that she put forth her demand in the meeting, explained to the field facilitator what she wanted to do, and that very day their group passed the resolution. Anita went to the headquarters next day and got the loan. Anita’s husband has now started the electric repairs and appliances that is doing extremely well. Since this is a remote village, people had to travel to other villages or the city to buy electrical appliances but now Sher Singh and Anita have kept a few in their shops. The villagers now call upon him if there is any electrical problem. He works very hard in his shop and many a time stays there till late night. He manages to earn Rs. 3500 – Rs. 4500 now. On some months he has even earned Rs. 10,000 per month, because the demand for electrical work is much more in the rainy season.
This has also changed Sher Singh’s attitude towards his wife. Earlier on, he was not very sure of what this whole concept of SHG meant and even though Anita used to borrow small amounts, he was not very appreciative of the fact. But now, having witnessed the opportunities it has created for them, and made Anita eligible for a loan from the Disha MFI, he wonders how they could have survived without this in life. He also feels sory for having doubted Anita’s involvement with the group and says that he will also start a men’s SHG in their village. Anita plans to borrow a loan next year and buy some livestock so that along with Sher Singh, she can also contribute to the family income with her own hard work. It is a story of tremendous change.
Two Fold Rise in Income through Shop Set Up by Loan
Kiran is a resident of village Mushal, Behat and has a huge family of 14 members. Kiran’s family has a very small piece of land. Whatever is grown in this land is consumed by the family itself. For further investment they grow some tress on the margins of the land, but they are sold only once in 5-6 years and the income gained thereof is spent in no time. Most of it is lost in repaying the loans from the moneylender, that have been borrowed over the years.
Having a large family is a huge constraint on the resources. No matter how much they try to earn, they are always hand-to mouth. Kiran has been blessed with very intelligent children. Those who could go to school have been doing well but most had to drop out for lack of funds. Kiran often wonders how to provide them with an opportunity where they can make the best of their talents.
Income Status
Past: Rs 10,000 to 20,000 per annum
Present: Rs 30,000 to 40,000 per annum
The children are engaged in various kinds of jobs. Selling Poplar trees in nearby Yamunanagar, they are able to earn 20,000 only per annum. Added to that some little earnings from other sources, the family barely manages to scrape through.
Few years back, Kiran came across Disha’s Field facilitators who were forming groups in the villages. Kiran also became a member of Vikas SHG and is extremely happy that this has paved the way for her to be eligible for a loan from Disha MFI.
Kiran borrowed a sum of Rs. 10,000 from Disha MFI and started a petty shop. Today this shop is doing very well in the village and is giving her returns enough to pay back the loan and also save some for herself and her family. Kiran is confident that she will expand this shop and her business. She is extremely happy with the way her loan got sanctioned in just two days and she immediately invested it in starting her shop. At present, the family income has gone up to Rs. 50,000 per annum. “I know I can apply for a quick loan in Disha when I need to borrow next year for investing more in my shop. I can also send my children to school after some time.”
Financial Support Causes Income to Rise
Israt lives with her husband and eight children in Chilkana village of Saharanpur district. Her husband used to engage in sale and purchase of scraps and was the only earning member in the family. The income fetched them only Rs 20,000-Rs 24,000 per annum. As is evident, the family was living in indigent circumstances and crisis most of the time. Moneylender was the only source of borrowings and borrowings also piled one on top of the other rendering Ishrat and her family vulnerable to abuse, rebuke and also violence from the moneylender. The condition of the family was going from bad to worse.
It was then that Israt came in touch with Disha’s SHG facilitators and they informed her about the SHGs that they were forming in the villages. The idea appealed to Israt and she became a part of one of the groups and the members called it Nai khoj. Israt came to know about the concept of group savings, interloaning, bank linkages and bank borrowings. Within a few years, Israt could witness a visible change in her life. There was some sort of financial backing now, which she could fall back on, in times of need.
Income Status
Past: Rs 20,000 to 24,000 per annum
Present: Rs 36,000 to 40,000 per annum
The group was also a great moral support to her and also a platform where she could get together with other women and discuss her problems. But Israt wanted to move beyond this. She wanted to make some investment in some activity that would yield income to her on a sustainable basis. Hence she took a loan from the Disha MFI and started stitching and needlework on clothes within her house. Israt has been doing well and has bee earning enough to repay on time. She says it was so convenient to borrow from Disha MFI. She did not have to spend a lot of time on formalities and the whole process was quite simple. The field facilitators and the Headquarters staff explained the process very clearly and also the repayment schedule in a simple manner.
She has been repaying on time and plans to borrow more and expand her work. Israt also says that the provision of this loan has encouraged her to be more enterprising and she has started thinking on her future goals and how she can extend her business. She is also encouraging the other women in her vicinity to start making such investments for income generating activities.