In 2009, ten women from Jhirpani village in Odisha’s Sundargarh district came together with a simple yet powerful dream: to secure a stable income for their families. With just ₹50 each, they pooled ₹500 to start making puffed rice laddus, supplying them to local anganwadi centers under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme.
Expansion in 2011
But these women were not just looking for survival—they sought growth. In 2011, they expanded their offerings to include chhatua, a nutritious multigrain mix. Their defining moment arrived when they learned about the benefits of millets and the rising demand for healthy, locally sourced foods. Inspired by the Odisha Millet Mission, they boldly ventured into millet-based products.
The journey was anything but easy. They faced financial constraints, market challenges, and the task of convincing consumers to embrace millet-based snacks. But their persistence and resilience paid off. Today, the Dibyajyoti Self-Help Group (SHG) has grown from ten women to 80, offering 43 varieties of millet-based delicacies, from biscuits and idlis to vadas, pakoras, jalebis, and even ragi pickles and tea.
Inauguration of Millet Shakti Café
In March 2022, their hard work reached new heights with the inauguration of the Millet Shakti Café in Rourkela, where they serve fresh millet-based dishes. Their packaged snacks are now stocked at five railway stations—Rourkela, Rajgangpur, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, and Kesinga—under the ‘One Station One Product’ scheme, with expansion plans for Bhubaneswar. What began as a small effort to earn a living has flourished into a ₹2 croreenterprise, transforming not just their incomes but their lives. As President Prema Das proudly states, “We have come a long way. Our joint efforts and hard work have changed our lives. Today, we earn, save, and dream bigger than ever before.”
Their story is one of grit, determination, and the unwavering belief that when women come together, they can build an empire—one millet snack at a time.
