Women's group plans food foray

A group of women entrepreneurs here are working on a proposal to start manufacture snacks to match national brands.

About a dozen women small entrepreneurs from Chhattisgarh recently visited Hyderabad under a central government-sponsored programme and noted the activities in the factories run exclusively by the women.

"We were quite influenced by the system that involves only women and want to experiment the same in Chhattisgarh," the women entrepreneurs said. Initially, the members had planned to set up industry that would produce savouries products, they added.

The products, which would range from tasty and nutritious namkeens to pickles and other food products, would be launched in the state to fight the nationally branded market leaders in the segment, the members added.

The members recently met the senior officials of the industrial development commission during their visit to the state. They briefed officials about the proposal and sought help from the Centre in taking up the project. The officials assured all possible assistance.

According to the members, the officials had assured upto 90 per cent grant for starting the project if the women made cluster-approach in executing the project.

They said the Centre could consider even assisting grant upto 90 per cent for setting up showrooms in different cities for selling the products.

The director of Chhattisgarh State Industrial Development Corporation, S K Behar, said that the state government intended to encourage and promote women in food manufacturing segment.

The state government assured all possible assistance to the women taking up the project in the state, he added.