On New Year’s Day, when Salem’s Veerapandy Kalanjia Jeevidam Farmers Producer Company was showcased nationally as one of the success stories of Farmer Producers Organisation (FPO), the development did not cause any surprise. For, Tamil Nadu had been identified by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) as one having a conducive ecosystem for the formation and nurturing of FPOs.
That day, the Salem FPO’s director, R. Shanthi, 39, who did not study beyond high school, interacted with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and explained that her organisation was “fully owned and operated by women,” with 2,211 shareholders from 152 villages spread over the Sankagiri, Makudanchavadi, Veerapandi and Panamarathupatti panchayat unions.
