Guwahati, June 29: The Mizoram Rural Bank has received recognition for successfully financing wineries run by self-help groups in Mizoram. The rural bank was presented with the Gold Award in the livelihood promotion category for SKOCH Financial Inclusion and Deepening Awards 2014 at the 36th SKOCH Summit held in New Delhi recently, a bank spokesman said.

The award was given to the bank for financing and supporting the Champhai and Hnahlan Wineries managed and run by various self-help groups under the Champhai Grape Growers Society and Hnahlan Grape Growers Society respectively.

The SKOCH Financial Inclusion and Deepening Awards is given by SKOCH Consultancy Services Private Ltd to identify and felicitate individuals, projects and institutions that have made significant contributions to the cause of financial inclusion, financial deepening, customer service and value addition.

The SKOCH Consultancy Services Private Ltd, founded in 1997, is a strategy and management consulting firm that runs the SKOCH Development Foundation, an autonomous, non-profit policy think tank.

The bank spokesman said currently, Champhai Grape Growers Society has 110 self-help groups affiliated to it and over 1,650 members. Likewise, Hnahlan Grape Growers Society was formed in 2008 with 32 self-help groups, which has grown to 51 with over 800 members today. “The two societies have also contributed more than Rs 75 lakh to the state exchequer as revenue, which is a success story,” a source said.