Members of a self-help group arrange packets of turmeric at their centre

July 1: A small 100-gram packet of turmeric is slowly changing the economic texture of Dhemaji villages from poverty to self-reliance.

Aided by a self-help group movement and supported by the government, hundreds of villagers are now busy grinding and stuffing turmeric into packets, being marketed under the brand name “Subansiri”.

“We assure purity and quality”, promise the 100-gram packets, marketed by Subansiri Self-Help Group Federation under the District Rural Development Agency.

“Two self-help groups, Amuthi and Dharitri, are involved in producing the turmeric packets. They not only assure purity and quality to consumers, but have also changed the lives of those involved in the self-help group movement in the district,” P. Ashok Babu, the deputy commissioner of the district said.

While there are 13 members in Amuthi, Dharitri has 10 women members.

“Every day, six members from each self-help group works at the production unit. A committee under the block development officer oversees the production process,” said Babu.

While the groups buy the raw material for Rs 5 to Rs 10 per kg, the 100-gram packet of turmeric costs Rs 12.

The members collect the raw materials — the dry turmeric — from neighbouring villages of Subahi, Besamora, Raiting, Seimen Chapori, Rangkop, Ajuha, Jairampur and process them at the Farmers Club-cum-Technology Centre near the Dhemaji weekly market.

The packets, which are bought from a firm in Guwahati, are then stamped with a logo and a punchline that says “The Power of the Self Help Group”.

The Dhemaji Chamber of Commerce eagerly came forward to help market the turmeric packets and now the brand enjoys a large local consumer base.

Since February, the federation has sold 5,000 packets and the demand is going up, said Babu. The success rate is astounding considering the project began only last December following an initiative by the Dhemaji administration and the DRDA.

Initially, the Dhemaji administration gave Rs 25 lakh under the Rastriya Shram Vikas Yojna for buildings, machinery and electricity.

After that, the Assam Gramin Vikash Bank, Dhemaji branch, gave a financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh to each self-help group.

Two quintals of turmeric powder are now lying with the federation at the Farmers Club-cum-Technology Centre ready to be stuffed into packets and sold.

The self-help group federation is now targeting trade fairs held from time to time in various parts of the district.