Dehradun, Aug 3 (IANS) The women-led Self-Help Group (SHGs) in Haldwani district of Uttarakhand are churning out ‘silk rakhis’ ahead of the pious Raksha Bandhan festival. They have gained prominence not just in the state but also across the country because of the silk-made rakhis.

In a special gesture, the women members of SHGs have sent a rakhi, made of silk, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The silk-made rakhis are getting recognition and acceptance across a broad spectrum and are also witnessing huge demand from across the country. The SHGs are also dispatching ‘silk rakhis’ to Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Rajasthan, Lucknow, Gujarat and Chandigarh.

The women functionaries of SHGs said that they have made special silk rakhis for PM Modi, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, as well as Agriculture Minister Ganesh Joshi and want to see them tie these rakhis on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan.

The SHGs have also done a good business by making rakhis this year.

“We have done business of around Rs 15,000 in the past few days. People are liking these rakhis, due to which the group is getting orders,” said a SHG member.

Kiran Joshi, president of Mahila Sahayata Samuh, says that the women of the group have been engaged in making rakhis for the last several months, through which their economic condition is getting stronger.

“There is a demand for this rakhi from other states of the country. These rakhis are eco-friendly,” she said.

Meanwhile, Hemchandra, Deputy Director of the Silk Department, said that the women of the SHG group are becoming self-reliant with this initiative.

He further informed that such products were being made for the first time in the country.

“Women of Mahila Swayam Sahayata Samuh have succeeded in doing a business of more than Rs 9 lakh in just nine months,” he said.

–IANS

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