The momentous occasion of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi’s birthday, affectionately known as Amma, 1000 graduates of the 5,000+ women and transgender trained over the last year were awarded certificates for their successful completion of various training programs offered by Amrita. The program celebrated Amma’s commitment towards building strength and capacity at the grasssroots through education and women’s empowerment.
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, Amma’s massive women Self-Help Groups (SHG) program AmritaSREE along with Amrita University and the UNESCO Chair on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment have launched a series of large-scale multi-skilling training projects to empower women and transgender individuals in rural communities. The main objective was to enhance livelihood resilience and strengthen SHG performance in the post-pandemic era. To date, more than 5,000 women and transgenders successfully completed vocational and life skills training. 4,500 of these women were trained under MSDE’s flagship program coordinated by NSDC called SANKALP-AVSAR. The courses taught include Tailoring, Beautician, Seaweed cultivation, Beekeeping, General Duty Assistant, Mushroom Cultivation, Embroidery, Agriculture, and Goatery. Amrita’s commitment extends beyond training as the beneficiaries are also trained in skills to strengthen the SHG model along with business and entrepreneurship skills to start their own collective businesses creating Smart SHGs.
These courses paved the way for these graduates to embark on new journeys in their lives, armed not only with practical skills but also with a profound sense of purpose and a commitment to making positive contributions to their communities.
This project has been executed across seven states in India: Delhi, Haryana, Kerala, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh.
On Amma’s birthday, 1,000 women attended the celebrations and were presented with certificates in recognition of their successful training completion.
Distinguished guests and dignitaries who joined in felicitating the graduates and handed the certificates to the participants were the Hon’ble Minister of Heavy Industries, Dr. Shri Mahindra Nath Pandey, Shri M K Raghavan, Member of Parliament, AICC member, Swami Satchidananda, President of the Shivagiri Math.
The certificates distributed at this event were not merely tokens of accomplishment; they symbolized the transformative power of education and embodied Amma’s message of love, compassion, and selfless service. Overall, approximately 2 lakh individuals have benefitted from various training programs, a testament to the far-reaching impact of Amrita’s educational initiatives.
