Sankul organises women of poor households into self- governed institutions called Self Help Groups(SHG), Village Organisations and Block Federations. At least one woman from every poor household is brought into the SHG network. These platforms are ‘of the poor’ and ‘for the poor’ and can subsequently partner with local governments, public service providers, banks, private sector and other mainstream institutions to facilitate the delivery of social and economic services to the poor. This is a low cost, highly successful model. Sankul’s primary focus is towards building the capacities of the women in promoting unity and self-reliance. We believe that the poor have tremendous capabilities and a strong desire to come out of poverty, and are essentially lacking an enabling environment which promotes self-expression. Encouraging and handholding women in their journey out of poverty whist avoiding any kind of dependency syndrome is a part of our core ethos.

As a part of the local area development drive, Sankul partnered with Toyam Technologies, installed sustainable drinking water systems in the villages of Bhanguri and Swamika. This unique initiative involved the coming together of NGO’s (Sankul/SPYM), Technical Service Provider(Toyam), Women’s Village Organisation and the Gram Panchayats in a seamless fashion. Piloted in the villages of Bhanguri and Swamika, these water treatment plants effectively reduce the salt content in the ground water and supply to the village at affordable costs. Moreover these units can also function unmanned, as the process for collection is digitized and smart card driven. Lastly, such plants are operated by women belonging to SHG’s. Sankul aims to tackle the drinking water crisis in Hathin with the installation of several such plants in critical villages. Not only does it address a serious public health concern, but also generates local employment in the forms of operational and distribution networks.

With a view to create sustainable livelihoods for SHG women, Sankul has partnered with SPYM, and is supported by esteemed organisations such as NHPC, Canara Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and SJVN to install a modern, fully equipped garment manufacturing centre in Hathin, Palwal. The project is designed within an overarching objective of women’s empowerment in view of the prevailing socio-economic and political conditions in the region and to bring about a positive change in their position within both the household and community. Housing over 30 different kinds of modern tailoring machinery, the centre is geared towards simultaneously training fresh talent and manufacturing marketable products. Sankul aspires to bring in a wave of professionalism and technical expertise, and combine it with the natural talent of the women to create a lasting change for all participants.

Access to low cost credit and capital continues to inhibit the poor in many parts of India. Despite the best efforts of local banks in the region, there continues to be a shortage of credit availability for those in need. This pushes the already vulnerable into the clutches of illicit brokers and money lenders, forcing them to borrow at unreasonable rates of interest. Sankul aims at breaking this cycle by creating an alternative source of micro-credit which is community-owned, community-run. Women from across the block have come within the umbrella of the Navchetna Mahila Block Federation to strengthen unity at the block level and provide financial assistance those who need it the most. Sankul, as their technical service provider, is committed to the training and capacity building of the poor in financial literacy and transparency, as well as assisting them in complying with financial rules and regulations. Apart from financial interventions, Navchetna is positioned to be a guiding light for the women in the years to come. Gender equality demands a process that goes beyond economic empowerment and leads to greater and effective participation in social and political processes and greater decision-making power. Navchetna is destined to play a crucial role in these spheres for the years to come.

Sankul Foundation is proud to announce the establishment of two Agarbatti Clusters in collaboration with our esteemed partners SJVN Limited. With a unique approach to livelihood creation, Sankul has successfully completed the training of 100 poor women of the villages of Swamika and Kalsada in all aspects of agarbatti making. Sankul aims to produce niche hand-rolled incense sticks alongside mechanized everyday incence sticks right in the villages, allowing our women to ‘work from home’. The objective of the project is to create a new wave of entrepreneurship in backward villages of Haryana whilst adding a secondary income source in the poorest of households. We believe that the industrious nature of the women coupled with a market-oriented approach can bring a lasting socio economic change in the most backward of regions in India. Sankul is proud to announce the launch of its products - namely Madhur and Utsav - which are an outcome of years of capacity building and handholding with the local community. These products are manufactured and packaged by members of the local community and are now market ready. We welcome everyone to sample our products and spread the word about holistic development and poverty eradication through entrepreneurship as a sustainable model.

Women of Mewat region in which Hathin Block falls use ashes, newspaper, sand, husks and dried leaves during their menstrual cycles. Many women suffer from reproductive tract infections and increased risk of contracting cancer. The project aims to bring a behavioural change by creating awareness about menstrual hygiene, removing misconceptions about menstruation and ensuring access to affordable sanitary napkins to the women and girls of this region. Sankul has made it a mission to eradicate challenges and misconceptions about menstruation whilst simultaneously generating employment for local women of Self Help Groups. In this context, Sankul aims to create a fully functional sanitary napkin manufacturing facility in Hathin to provide affordable and hygienic solutions for the local community. Through our training and awareness programmes, we hope to increase the acceptability sanitary napkins in the region in the years to come.