In several villages of Uttar Pradesh, the first step towards financial freedom for women is made through small monthly savings within Self-Help Groups (SHGs). The Uttar Pradesh State Mission for Rural Livelihoods (UPSRLM) promotes this initiative. This mission is a regional project of the National DAY-NRLM program and operates under the aegis of the Department of Rural Development.
According to a statement by the state government dated September 2, 2026, by October 2024, approximately 10.05 crore women joined through about 90.87 lakh SHGs at the national level under DAY-NRLM.
The mission offers a phased action plan. The income of these women's groups comes from various sectors: they engage in agricultural work, animal husbandry, and dairy farming, as well as participate in food processing, local product handling, and services.
An example of such activity is the Vidhyuti Sakhi program, which linked women from SHGs with electricity bill collection work. By mid-2025, about 30,000 women were registered in this program, and 438 Vidhyuti Sakhi achieved the status of Lakhpati Didi.
The government has also directed the inclusion of beneficiaries of rural housing schemes, such as PM Awas (Gramin) and Mukhyamantri Awas Yojana (Gramin), into SHGs. The goal of this step is to provide women not only with housing but also with a source of income.
It is important to note that the strength of the mission lies in collective efforts; for a group, overcoming challenges such as access to capital, training, and market is significantly easier than for an individual woman.