Women in Lapran Village scripting new success story in farming sector, set over 1000 acres of land burn-free

Ludhiana, December 18, 2023: Progressive women farmers in Lapran village of Ludhiana District are scripting new success stories in the agriculture sector by adopting unique initiatives for the progress of peasantry. Dr. Rupinder Kaur, currently serving as the Chairman of Lapran Multipurpose Farmer Producer Company, has been leading transformative initiatives under the HDFC Parivartan Project, executed by Grant Thornton Bharat since September 2022.
 
Divulging the details, Manpreet Singh Manager, Public Sector Grant Thornton Bharat, said that initially by 10 Board of Directors (BOD), this women farmer producer company took a significant step in March this year by acquiring a Forage Harvester, a vital farm implement for harvesting forage plants to create silage.
 
He further mentioned that with a membership base of 350 individuals, the FPC recently obtained approval to acquire a baler machine, a move that has played a crucial role in making over 1000 acres of land burn-free. He said that this balling unit has not only provided employment opportunities for women in Lapran but has also generated revenue amounting to Rs. 30 lakhs for the women producer company of Lapran (Block Payal).
 
The FPC's overarching goal is to expand the Custom Hiring Center (CHC) to alleviate the financial burden on farmers when acquiring expensive machinery independently. Presently, the CHC boasts a range of equipment, including a Baler, Rake, Rotavator, Forage Harvester, Multi-crop planter, Forage Shredder, and Reaper.

Mr. Singh stated that the ultimate objective is to offer essential services, alleviate environmental stress, address the decline in groundwater levels, and foster a sense of entrepreneurship among women in the community.
 
He added that that Grant Thornton Bharat  LLP has been awarded work to benefit more than 27000 women (directly and indirectly) by aggregating/evolving all women FPCs from SHGs/JLGs in the Districts of Ludhiana, Moga, Barnala and Rupnagar. The main objective of the program is to empower the women and create a positive impact on their social and economic conditions by upskilling them and making them eligible for various Govt. schemes, which are available for FPCs/POs. They would also be able to achieve economies of scale in procurement of raw materials and will have better market linkages as an FPC/POs, he added.