(From left) Richa Mishra, Local Editor, Hyderabad, business Line; The session included Aruna Debbarma, Lakhpati Didi, Tripura Rural Livelihood Mission and Vaishali Gugre, Member, Swayam Shikshan Prayog, | Photo Courtesy: Bijoy Ghosh
Their stories of how they ignored the taunts, balanced housework and caregiving duties, and trained to become successful farmers brought the audience into applause. When Aruna Debbarma, a “lakhpati didi“Earlier I used to hear taunts when I go out for training and work, but now I get compliments,” said the man, who came from Tripura under the Tripura Rural Livelihood Mission. Today I train about 400 women in agricultural techniques for vermi-compost and natural farming,” the applause echoed.
Equally impressive was the way Vaishali Gugre, a member of Shishkhan Prayod herself, shared her struggles as a success story and how she started from scratch, “But today I have a business worth around ₹60 lakh and a turnover of around ₹12 lakh in a year.”
Gugre and Debbarma were speaking at the session “From Fieldwork to Enterprise” at the BusinessLine Agri & Commodity Summit 2026, which was moderated by Richa Mishra, local editor of the newspaper in Hyderabad. Their stories revealed how women no longer plowed the fields alone. And how natural farming and women-led groups are gaining momentum across rural India, ultimately breaking the clay ceiling.
Need for better markets
However, the session brought to light the challenges faced by women. Both lamented the lack of assured markets and fair pricing. “Production is no longer the main problem,” Debbarma stressed, “we need better markets and structured support for our clusters.” Furthermore, he said most produce is still sold locally with limited government procurement or supply chain support.
Similar concerns were raised by Ghuge from Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district, where she helped launch a women-led Farmer Producer Company (FPC) in 2017. At present, nine such women-led FPCs operate in eight blocks of the district, enabling collective buying and selling. “Market access, price stability, supply system and low-interest credit – these are the four pillars we need,” he said, adding that scaling up remains difficult despite increasing production.
Both agri-entrepreneurs pointed out that most rural women do not own land in their own names, making it difficult to access formal credit. Ghuge said that when her FPC was formed, many women had to obtain holding letters from male family members to obtain loans and complete the formalities. Both agricultural entrepreneurs called for easier access to low-interest loans, formal recognition of women as farmers, and stronger institutional support for collective enterprises.
Role of SHG
Beyond the policy gap, both the agri-entrepreneurs highlighted the transformative role of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in their journey. According to both entrepreneurs, their transformation began with small monthly savings and access to modest credit through SHGs, which enabled them to start farming, livestock and allied activities on a limited scale before expanding into organized enterprises.
He said that while training interventions through Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) have improved productivity, the primary bottleneck is now shifting from production to post-harvest market linkages. Additionally, she said increased financial participation has enabled women to take on collective leadership roles and train other farmers.
Published on February 27, 2026
