Saras Mela kicks off in Siliguri, on till Jan 16

Siliguri: To empower women of Self-help groups financially, the 6th Saras Mela organised by the West Bengal State Rural Livelihoods Mission (Anandadhara) kicked off at Mela Ground of Kanchenjunga Stadium in Siliguri. Pradip Mazumder, Minister of Panchayat and Rural Development department, inaugurated the fair on Friday afternoon.

The minister was hopeful that this year the sale will be increased in the fair compared to last year.

“Last year, products worth Rs 8.5 crore were sold in this fair. This year, we are hopeful that the sale will be increased to at least Rs 12 crore. Products worth Rs. 20 crore were sold at Kolkata Saras mela within 12 days. We want to increase the income of women of self-help groups; therefore, such fairs are being organized every year. This year, except Kolkata and Siliguri more three Saras Mela will be held in the State,” said the Minister.

Saras Mela is a National Level fair that provides a marketing platform for the promotion and sales of products produced by the women of Self Help Groups.

This year a total of 86 stalls, 2 pavilions, 24 open spaces and 10 food court stalls were there at the fair. Out of these 59 stalls were from 22 districts of Bengal, 12 stalls were from other states including Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Assam etc. The fair will continue till January 16.