category Regional, chandigarh, , tags Regional, chandigarh, , DW BUREAU Chandigarh Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Saturday said the state government has decided that 33 per cent of all ration depots to be allotted in future would be to women. Self-Help Groups applying for ration depot allotment will be given priority, he said while interacting with the beneficiaries of SGHs. According to an official statement, the chief minister also said 25 per cent of the shops allotted at bus terminuses through lottery or any other means would be reserved for self-help groups. If shops are auctioned, they will get a 10 per cent discount on the auction amount, Khattar said. During the interaction, the beneficiaries of self-help groups expressed their gratitude to the chief minister for the announcements made for them, the statement said. The chief minister also announced the establishment of a call centre in the office of the Haryana State Rural Livelihood Mission to provide information to self-help group members. Highlighting the growth of self-help groups in the state, Khattar said there were only 812 SHGs in 2014 which increased to more than 57,000 in the last eight-and-a-half years. They have been provided with a revolving fund of over Rs 54 crore, a community investment fund of approximately Rs 285 crore, and bank credit linkage of around Rs 880 crore, he said and stressed that self-help groups have become instrumental in providing social support. By joining self-help groups, the members not only take care of their families through self-employment but also create employment opportunities for other women, Khattar said, adding that these groups should be called social help groups . During the interaction, he directed officials to develop a website that would provide information about products made by self-help groups. Khattar said such products should be certified for quality and given a brand identity to facilitate their purchase through the portal. The chief minister said the year 2023 is being celebrated as the International Year of Millets and urged the self-help groups to start creating products using coarse cereals. He said arrangements have been made to provide training to SHG members. Currently, 773 women are working as bank facilitators after receiving computer training and graduating from the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance. (editor dailyworld.in)