Lucknow, Dec 20 (IANS): In an effort to expedite the distribution of food grain to the poor and empower women alongside, over 1803 fair price shops are being run by self-help groups (SHGs) in Uttar Pradesh.

The involvement of women SHGs in the public distribution network is ensuring safety, transparency and accessibility and above all reducing the transaction cost.

This initiative of the State Rural Livelihood Mission has helped strengthen the status of these women in their families and their village.

The women groups are effectively running the fair price shop. They collect ration from the block headquarters regularly and distribute in their village to ration cardholders. These women also maintain all the records to ensure complete transparency and accountability in the process.

Preeti Devi, a resident of Shikarpur village in Bulandshahr district, is the secretary of the Jyoti self-help group.

A mother of two, Preeti has struggled hard and long in life. Her husband passed away in 2018 in an accident. In September 2020, Preeti got the responsibility of running the ration shop.

For the past over a year, she has been running the shop and earning a monthly income of about Rs 7,000 and her children are now able to go to school.

"It is with State Rural Livlihood Mission's (SRLM) support, today I have become self-sufficient and with me, others have also found a medium of earning. This makes me happy," says Preeti.

Uttar Pradesh government has allocated around 1850 fair price shops to the self-help groups out of the total 2420 selected for the purpose.

Notably, there are around 80,000 fair price shops to provide free ration to the beneficiaries every month in the state.