Steady Growth, Bold Choices, and the Power of Support
Suvarna Bibhishan Mali, is a remarkable woman from Javalga (Po) Village, Ausa Block, Latur District, Maharashtra. Her formal education ended at the 10th standard, and she got married at just 18, Suvarna moved into a home with only two acres of farmland, a struggling household, and even as her husband supported the family as a driver. Her days were filled with chores, her heart quietly held onto one hope: “I want to do something of my own.”
That chance came in 2016, when Suvarna was introduced to Swayam Shikshan Prayog SSP. She began attending meetings, listening, learning, and thinking. Her first attempts at earning an income brought in barely ₹1,500 a month. It wasn’t much, but it was a start.
Then came a turning point in 2019 — a six-day business training organized by SSP in Ausa supported by Avendus . It was the first time Suvarna truly saw herself as a businesswoman. With help from her women’s self-help group, she borrowed ₹50,000 and added ₹70,000 of her own savings. She bought two cows and began a small milk-selling business. She learned how to manage money, track her earnings, and treat her dairy like the business it was. Bit by bit, her income began to grow. She started earning around Rs 27000/month from the sale of milk.
But Suvarna didn’t stop at small gains. She took a No interest loan of ₹40000 through SSP also provided by RG Fund of Avendus and expanded her business — purchasing one more cow, and soon after, starting the Lakshmi Milk Collection Center right in her village. Her center now gathers over 250 litres of milk every day, including 50 litres from her own dairy. Her monthly income rose to ₹70000 and after all expenses — feed, care, and upkeep — she was saving nearly ₹50000 a month. For a woman who once worried about buying school books for her children, this was no small victory.
The journey didn’t end there. Suvarna reinvested — buying a cattle feed machine, installing a biogas plant at home, and benefiting from SSP’s solar-powered water system, which brought her electricity costs down drastically.
Today, Suvarna owns 17 animals, produces organic manure worth ₹1 lakh every year. Annually, Suvarna earns around ₹10 lakhs with net income of ₹7 lakhs. The house that she lives in, she helped build with her income. She even purchased a plot of land in her name and supports 10 employees.
But what makes Suvarna’s story truly remarkable isn’t just her own success — she now mentors over 90 women into starting their own dairy ventures.
“I may not have studied much,” she says, “but SSP made me realise that learning never ends — especially when it helps others too.”
Her dream now? To start her own milk cooperative union and see her son graduate with a degree.
Suvarna’s story isn’t about overnight success. It’s about steady growth, bold choices, and the power of support systems.
Swayam Shikshan Prayog
22nd July, 2025