Flipkart to sell products made by women self-help groups; govt to rope in Amazon too in January

New Delhi: Products made by women self-help groups formed under the DAY-NULM will now be available on e-commerce platforms as the government on 30 December signed an MoU with Flipkart in this regard. Union Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra said the government would also rope in Amazon to provide a platform for the online sale of SHGs’ products, a PTI report said. E-commerce marketplace Flipkart on Monday said it has partnered with the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to empower skilled but underserved sections of society by inducting them into e-commerce. “Under the memorandum of understanding exchanged between Flipkart and the ministry today (Monday), Flipkart will collaborate with state missions under the DAY-NULM to establish the Flipkart Samarth program in 22 states in India to begin with,” the company said in a statement. Under the DAY-NULM, self-help groups consisting 44 lakh women have been working across the country, a move aimed at making women financially independent. [caption id=“attachment_5386741” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] “Today, we have signed an MoU with Flipkart. It aims to directly sell products made by self-help groups through e-commerce portals. We are also likely to ink an MoU with Amazon on 7 January for the same purpose,” Mishra told reporters on the sidelines of an event. According to the secretary, 12 lakh people have so far been trained in different skills in the last five years under the mission while around 5.06 lakh people were given funds by the government and they are currently self-employed. Shelters have been set up for nearly one lakh people and about 12 lakh street vendors have been identified under the DAY-NULM, Mishra said. In every city, the government will also set up a ‘City Livelihood Centre’ through which people will be able to avail the service of plumbers, electricians and mechanics, among others, he said. Mishra said an MoU has also been signed with the Plumbing Council of India to train more people in view of the Jal Jeevan Mission and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) as a large number of plumbers would be required across the country. Flipkart and the state missions will work with self-help groups, including local artisans, weavers and crafts producers, and producers of raw and organic food items to provide them market access, training and support, it added. --With PTI inputs