Micro Credit Groups

 

Micro Credit Groups-MACTS: Mutually Aided Co-operative Thrust Society is the core micro credit group in CHS. Chaitanya Sravanthi’s major success in women empowerment comes from its hugely popular microcredit programs. When a formal registered cooperative society was formed to manage microcredit operations mostly targeting women with no proper means of earning they became completely free from clutches of unscrupulous local money lenders.
The beneficiaries’ success is evident from the perceptible changes in their status and lifestyle. Often they have become more assertive and confident in their day-to-day transactions and dealings with people in general and bank and government officials in particular.
They utilize economic opportunities available and set up small enterprises and make substantial profits thus keeping their small businesses sustainable.

HOW IT ALL STARTED:

Chaitanya Sravanthi catalyzed the formation of small groups of women not exceeding 15 members and these women are automatically enrolled as members of the microcredit society.
When these women, maintaining savings accounts, are provided access to small loans the individual groups are expected to make beneficiaries responsible for ensuring repayment.
In order to maximize this advantage, CS has on proposed to start “Gruhalakshimi mutually aided cooperative society ” with the objective of providing Institutionalized Micro-credit finance systems. this cooperative Society will offer NBFC services to the members. This Society will borrow funds from FI’s, Banks & other organizations who wish to invest their money and the society will use the same for meeting the financial requirements of the members. The Society is expected to start functioning from the next financial year i.e., from april 2007.

To start with about 50 Self Help Groups consisting of about 750 members were started in 1999. Since then the concept of micro-credit has caught on rapidly among womenfolk and the number of SHGs has grown by leaps and bounds.
Today the number of SHGs is more than 500 consisting of thousands of women.
Chaitanya Sravanthi also arranges external loans running into crores of rupees from nationalized banks and government agencies.

Key Achievements:

Chaitanya Sravanthi women groups have broadened the financial services to its members by registering Gruhalaxmi Mutually Aided Credit and Thrift Society Chaitanya Sravanthi SGH groups have reached annual turnover of over 40 million rupees by 2010.