Kudumbashree gears up for six-day fete

The Kudumbashree Mission in the state is all set to celebrate its fourteenth anniversary. Minister for Panchayats and Social Welfare M K Muneer said that, a  six-day-long celebration will be organised   in connection with the anniversary which will commence on September 27 at Marine Drive. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will inaugurate the meeting on October 1.

The fete will have trade fairs, media seminar, food festivals and other art and cultural activities. He said that a joint monitoring committee has been formed for the purpose which has 14 MLAs, with the principal secretary as the convener.

“At this juncture, we have undertaken a  series of events to celebrate the fourteenth anniversary of the Kudumbashree Mission, the prime one being the ‘Pusthakayathra’.

1,072 books have been compiled by the women of the Kudumbashree Mission about their struggle  and how the mission has helped in moulding their lives,” he said.

The Minister said that, this is perhaps the first time in the history of Kerala that such an initiative is being undertaken. “The best of their stories will be made into a special collection at the state level. These books will be made available to the researchers and the public,” he said.

The ‘Pusthakayathra’ which aims to collect  the books written by women, has already started from both the northern and the southern parts of the state. In the north, the journey began from Hosankadi of Kasargode on September 9 and in south, it began from Udiyankulangara of Thiruvananthapuram district. Two cultural troupes of the Kudumbashree will accompany the yatra showcasing a variety of programmes. The yatra  will amass 1,072 books from 132 points across the state. Muneer said that, to give a fillip to the functioning of the Kudumbashree across the state, a chain of ‘Cafe Kudumbashree’ and ‘Ilaneer parlors’ will be opened. 

The govt will launch the branding and communications to promote the Kudumbashree products. The Minister also said that, the state government has received `22 crore out of `88 crore as the first instalment from the Central Government for the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) project.