NEW DELHI (India CSR): In a significant leap toward its Perspective Plan 2030 of serving 10 million rural smallholder households by 2030, Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN) has reached 3.4 million rural households in FY 2024–25, with 2.5 million participating in improved and locally viable sustainable livelihood opportunities. Of these 2.5 million, PRADAN directly engaged with more than 825,000 households and over 500,000 households are earning over Rs 100,000 annually, while 66,000 crossed Rs 250,000 through high-return livelihood models. PRADAN standardized 11 livelihood prototypes, tailored for sustainable and scalable income growth across diverse rural contexts.
PRADAN’s Perspective Plan has a holistic focus on gender equality, nutrition security, and ecological restoration. Now in its second year, the initiative is intensifying community engagement, especially women, to thrive through sustainable livelihoods, enterprise development and skill-building.
Working closely with the National and State Rural Livelihoods Missions, PRADAN supports the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of empowering 30 million rural women as Lakhpati Didis. PRADAN has promoted 93 women-led FPOs, bringing together 143,330 women shareholders and supported another 69 FPOs through partnerships. These collectives, with an annual turnover of Rs 1.2 billion, are enhancing market access and driving inclusive agricultural growth.
Speaking on the impact, Saroj Kumar Mahapatra, Executive Director, PRADAN said, “To strengthen livelihood resilience, PRADAN, along with its partners, is working with 2.5 million households to diversify income sources across farm, off-farm and nonfarm activities. Through the Government of India’s 10,000 Farmer Producer Organization (FPO) scheme, PRADAN has advanced crop diversification and supported smallholder farmers to transition to higher-value crops. This includes pulses, oilseed, vegetables and fruit orchards. Our approach is rooted in collaboration and innovation. Our field teams work together with government institutions and local partners to develop scalable models for sustainable change.”
PRADAN’s Agriculture Production Cluster (APC) program reached 813,000 households through 9,609 Producer Groups, building robust value chains in close partnership with state governments. The organization also expanded soil moisture conservation and irrigation coverage to support sustainable farming.
“What we are building is not just income; it is resilience and dignity. Women and marginalized communities are leading the way in reimagining rural India. At PRADAN, we believe lasting change happens when communities themselves become the architects of their future. Through our Perspective Plan 2030, we are enabling them to participate meaningfully in shaping an equitable, inclusive and ecologically sustainable rural economy. The scale and success of our work so far only strengthens our resolve to reach the 50 million lives we have committed to transforming by the end of this decade,” he further added.
PRADAN’s efforts are closely aligned with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, which emphasizes rural transformation through income boost and financial inclusion using training programmes, advanced agricultural practices and infrastructure development.
(India CSR)
