BENGALURU: In Jasala, in western Uttar Pradesh, Murti Devi has been making 60 face masks a day for the past month after she finishes her household chores and work in the fields—alongside about 200 other women from self-help groups (SHGs) in the village in Shamli district.
About 1,800 km away in a village in Odisha’s Puri district, Minakshi Prusty and 50 women from an SHG are busy making herbal hand sanitizers.
Across the country, from Bihar and Jharkhand to Kerala and Karnataka, close to 6.8 lakh women members of SHGs have joined the fight against covid-19.
They’re making facemasks, running community kitchens, delivering essential supplies, sensitizing people about health and hygiene, and countering misinformation.