Building Livelihoods, Inspiring Independence

At Mukul Madhav Foundation, we believe development only needs an opportunity to seep into our growing communities. Our training programmes provide individuals with skills to become financially independent and contribute to their communities.

From the skilling centres we have established in Masar Village, Gujarat, and Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, to grassroots initiatives in villages across India, we provide hands-on training in areas such as computer literacy, tailoring, broom-making from coconut palm fronds, and agricultural techniques. Since 2018, more than 120 women have graduated from our tailoring programme. We also work on empowering families of children with cerebral palsy by teaching them to make candles and earthen lamps, helping them find purpose and income through dignified work.

Beyond vocational training, we devise livelihood programmes for specific needs and regions. These include government-certified plumbing courses for girls and technical training for underprivileged students in radiology and dialysis. In Kashmir, we have provided sheep and training in sheep rearing for vulnerable women. In Maharashtra, we’ve supported bee-keeping projects in Bhimashankar and Palghar, and backed self-help groups making kites in Gujarat. At Yerwada Jail in Pune, we train women inmates in cloth bag making. It promotes rehabilitation through skill-building.

We also support widows by donating sewing machines and cattle, while our ‘Aaji Bai Chi Shaala’ initiative has brought adult literacy to elderly women in Raigad. Across all these efforts, additional support is provided through start-up kits and market linkages. The aim is to create a nurturing ecosystem that promotes entrepreneurship and self-reliance.

The Yellow Ribbon NGO Fair features artisans, farmers, NGOs, and self-help groups from across India. Mukul Madhav Foundation has been participating in it for eight years now. It supports partners from 12 states and celebrates creativity and community-based enterprises.

Mukul Madhav Foundation (MMF) has extended its collaboration with FICCI FLO to promote and grow rural livelihood and entrepreneurship programs throughout India in 2024–2025. Our managing trustee, Ms. Ritu Prakash Chhabria, has served on FLO’s governing board for five consecutive years and previously held the role of chairperson of FLO Pune from 2019 to 2020. FLO and MMF have worked on several projects to equip rural women and youth with entrepreneurial tools and practical skills.

We introduce regional partners to help facilitate the implementation of livelihood programmes across diverse regions for effective coordination and enabling local relevance. Seven FLO chapters signed formal agreements, while meaningful on-ground initiatives were launched in eight other regions, even without signed MOUs.

These collaborations have a varied and profound impact on women’s earning ability. In Karnataka, women are being trained in beauty and wellness, while in Jammu & Kashmir, women in Budgam are learning tailoring and traditional embroidery. In Assam, rural women are taking up mushroom cultivation, while in West Bengal and Odisha, poultry farming and bio-farming are introduced as income-generating activities. In Uttar Pradesh, agarbatti-making is becoming a livelihood for rural women, and in Uttarakhand, a special focus is given to self-help groups and entrepreneurship through Project Udyamita. In Silvassa, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, skill-building initiatives aim to build long-term self-reliance.

Beyond training programmes, we supported initiatives such as the FLO Pune Marathon, the national cycle distribution drive across 15 states, and Anshukam 2024 in Delhi.