#SARASmeinHUM.....Ajeevika Saras Mela at India Gate Lawns, New Delhi

#SARASmeinHUM.....Ajeevika Saras Mela at India Gate Lawns, New Delhi

Saras, means excellent, the best, something very nice or beautiful. Ajeevika is NRLM's flagship programme promoting sustainable livelihoods through community based organizations. Ajeevika Saras is the signature event hosted by the Ministry of Rural Development, Rural  Livelihoods Divison and CAPART at the India Gate Lawns, New Delhi for marketing the products made by SHG women from all over India.
About eight years ago, the Ministry of Rural Development realised that lakhs of rural households remained under poverty due to social inhibitions and the lack of opportunities. It therefore came up with a programme namely the National Rural Livelihoods Mission which brought in the concept of inclusive growth through social inclusion. This became the largest programme of poverty eradication through social development.
Financial inclusion, Economic Inclusion and Sutainable Livelihoods followed Social inclusion and became the four pillars of the mission. The scheme brought rural women into focus by creating self help groups of women to facilitate their empowerment. Till date more than six crore women all over India are a part of this mission which has grown by leaps and bounds during the last 5 years. It has led to the creation of entrepreneurs producing a variety of products ranging from food and food products to handicrafts and handlooms. Providing markets to them became the next important step leading to Saras Melas all over the country.
Ajeevika Saras is the mother of all Saras Melas and provides a market at the national level to all SHGs. This time in its renewed avatar at the India Gate Lawns, the Ajeevika Saras proudly presents the fruits of labour of the SHGs from the twenty-nine states and nine union territories of India. So from Tamil Nadu in the south to Uttarkhand and Jammu and Kashnir in the North, from Gujarat and Maharashtra in the west to West Bengal and Orissa in the east, and the seven sisters of the North-east one will find exclusive products form every state and union territory at the Ajeevika Saras Mela.
From connoisseurs of art to lovers of textile, from health food freaks to organic shoppers Ajeevika Saras is a haven which unfolds itself in all its glory. It has 500 stalls in the two air-conditioned halls. There are interesting add ons like the puppet show, magic show, one-man music orchestra, kids play zone, street food stalls. Meticulously planned with sufficient space for easy movement  the organizers have been very thoughtful and even made arrangements of a feeding room for lactating mothers. As I meandered through the stalls I realised that Diwali shopping could never have been more easy and interesting.
There are host of mouthwatering delicacies from every state of the country at the Ajeevika Food Court to energize you after shopping The interesting and authentic cuisines made with a generous dose of love by the SHG women from every state is a delight for gourmet lovers. So shop till you drop and eat till you burp.
The cultural shows planned in the evenings are another highlight. The inauguration of the Saras at the hands of the Hon'ble Minister of State of Rural Development, Saadhvi Niranjan Jyoti in the presence of Hon'ble Secretary for Rural Development, Mr. Amarjeet Sinha, Additional Secretary, Ms. Alka Upadhyay, and Joint Secretary, Ms. Leena Johri reached a crescendo with performances by SHG women of Mizoram doing the Cheraw, Bamboo dance. The energetic Singhi Chham or the Lion Dance of Sikkim left us mesmerised and transported us to a different world.
As Additional Secretary, Ms. Alka Upadhyay, rightly pointed out this is an exhibition which everyone could identify oneself with and feel it is their own. So come to Ajeevika Saras and rediscover yourself , #SARASmeinHUM, you will have so much to explore....