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  • Story

·

4 min read

Slicing Through Struggle: Maya’s Onion Enterprise

Nagalgaon, Kandhar Block, Nanded District, Maharashtra
Women’s Livelihoods
Enterprise Development
Maya Kalba Waghmare at the onion processing unit she now leads in Nagalgaon.

Maya Kalba Waghmare, 34, once worked only as an agricultural wage labourer in Nagalgaon. Today she runs an onion processing enterprise and leads her Self-Help Group. “This is not just employment,” she says, “it is a victory of our confidence and self-belief.”

  • The Challenge

Nagalgaon, home to about 252 households, has long depended on farming and onion cultivation. But falling onion prices left farmers facing heavy losses, and with no local processing or storage facilities, much of the harvest spoiled or was sold raw at low rates. Employment options for women were especially limited, and unstable seasonal income pushed many families to migrate for work.

  • The Turning Point

Support from CSO Ashwamegh Gramin Panlot Kshetra Vikas Va Shaikshanik Sanstha (AGVSS), Amravati (Kandhar Branch) helped establish an onion processing unit equipped with modern slicing, drying, grading, and packing machinery. Maya and other women were trained in production planning, financial management, digital record-keeping, quality control, packaging, and marketing – turning a group of wage workers into entrepreneurs. A farm-to-market value chain was also built, linking farmers directly to processors and cutting out middlemen.

Onions being graded and packed at the new processing unit.
  • The Change

Maya’s income has grown from wage labour to a stable ₹21,000–25,000 a month. She now takes financial decisions independently, has gained standing in her community, and, as SHG President/Secretary, represents and guides other women on the same path. “Earlier we used to work only as agricultural labourers,” she says, “but now we have become entrepreneurs.”

Outcomes at a glance
Monthly income
₹21,000–25,000, up from wage labour
Processing capacity
50 quintals of onions per day
Leadership
Appointed SHG President/Secretary
Growth target
₹1 crore turnover within 3 years
Expansion planned
Garlic, ginger, and tomato powder
Onions being graded and packed at the new processing unit.
“This is not just employment; it is a victory of our confidence and self-belief.”
– Maya Kalba Waghmare
  • Looking Ahead

From labouring on other people’s farms to leading her village’s economy, Maya’s journey continues – one quintal, one milestone, at a time.

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Fallow No More: Aghanmoti’s Rabi Harvest

Aghanmoti Rathia’s one acre used to lie fallow every Rabi season. This year it grew groundnut, sunflower, greens, and gourd.

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From Loss to Livelihood: Bimla’s Goat Enterprise

Bimla Rathia had given up goat rearing after disease wiped out her herd. Training and support rebuilt it into her family’s most reliable income.

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From Paddy to Profit: Ram Pyari’s Watermelon Story

Ram Pyari once earned about ₹23,040 a year growing paddy. Within one watermelon season, she nearly matched that in profit alone.

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4 min read

Fallow No More: Aghanmoti’s Rabi Harvest

Aghanmoti Rathia’s one acre used to lie fallow every Rabi season. This year it grew groundnut, sunflower, greens, and gourd.

Read the story
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4 min read

From Loss to Livelihood: Bimla’s Goat Enterprise

Bimla Rathia had given up goat rearing after disease wiped out her herd. Training and support rebuilt it into her family’s most reliable income.

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From Paddy to Profit: Ram Pyari’s Watermelon Story

Ram Pyari once earned about ₹23,040 a year growing paddy. Within one watermelon season, she nearly matched that in profit alone.

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