Udaipur: Just a few years ago, uncertainty defined Ms. Manju Devi’s life, when she lost her husband to tuberculosis in 2019. Widowed at a young age and solely responsibility to raise her two children, she depended on seasonal farm work and unpredictable wages to support her family. Today, she operates advanced processing machinery, earns a steady monthly income of ₹8,000, and stands as an example of how economic opportunities can transform lives. Manju’s journey is one among hundreds being shaped through Hindustan Zinc Limited’s (BSE: 500188 | NSE: HINDZINC) Sakhi Utpadan Samiti - the Microenterprise initiative, which is enabling women to turn skills into sustainable livelihoods and thriving enterprises. The initiative now engages 426 women, with their collective income witnessing a 43% year-on-year growth, increasing from ₹23 lakh in FY26 to ₹32.84 lakh.
The growing impact of Sakhi is
also reflected in the expansion of its brands Daichi that features a diverse
portfolio of high-quality FMCG products including pickles, honey, spices,
pulses, namkeen, oil and ghee and Upaya, the clothing brand of the enterprise,
cumulatively comprising of 14 production units across Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.
What began with traditional skills and local resources has evolved into a
diverse portfolio of products, with Sakhi Didis now producing crochet products,
groundnuts oils and millet-based products, alongside their existing offerings.
This growing product basket is enabling women to explore new markets while
building on skills rooted in their communities.
As part of this expansion, a new
millet production unit has been established at Dariba, creating an additional
avenue for women to participate in value-added food production. The unit will
support the production of millet-based products while strengthening local
enterprise opportunities and encouraging the use of traditional, locally
sourced grains.
Taking these products beyond
local markets, Sakhi Microenterprise through a partnership with Le Marche, its
products now available across three on-ground stores in Delhi, complementing
its presence on leading marketplaces such as Blinkit, Amazon, Flipkart, ONDC,
its dedicated e-commerce platform, ‘Heartswithfingers’ tapping into growing
digital adoption and expanding consumer reach. The partnership connects
women-led enterprises with an urban customer base, creating greater visibility
for their products while opening new avenues for market access and income
generation.
The initiative's approach draws
on the enduring idea of ‘Swavalamban’ - building self-reliance through local
skills, enterprise and dignified livelihoods. By creating opportunities for
women to produce, earn and participate in markets, Sakhi is helping strengthen
community-level economic resilience while keeping traditional skills and local
resources at the heart of enterprise development.
Through its growing network of
production centres and evolving product portfolio, Sakhi Microenterprise continues
to create pathways for women to transform skills into sustainable sources of
income.
Hindustan Zinc, a Vedanta Group
company continues to advance its vision of holistic community development
through various social interventions and community development initiatives,
nurturing education, building skills, enabling sustainable livelihoods, empowering
women, strengthening healthcare, and preserving the environment. With a
footprint that spans over 4,100 villages, Hindustan Zinc is positively
transforming the lives of more than 2.6 million people and remains deeply
committed to fostering inclusive growth and long-term social impact aligning to
the company’s 2030 sustainability goals.