NIT develops app to promote women SHGs’ products

With an objective to linking the customers with the SHGs to empower women with sustainable income-generation options, the NIT, Tiruchy, has developed three customised mobile applications, ‘Thirumathikart’, ‘Thirumathikart seller’ and ‘Thirumathikart logistics’.

The Thirumathikart will act as a platform to showcase all day-to-day products of different categories like handicrafts, clothing, cosmetics, household and decorative items, groceries, fashion, organic products and others to the customers efficiently.  Customers can find all the necessary products through this platform and also experience quality products as they are developed from the groups next door.

The SHG members create a large number of products, some of which compete with branded/market-established products in terms of quality. The registered Self-Help Group will establish their enterprises by promoting the products through Thirumathikart Seller application.

The customised mobile application “Thirumathikart” promotes products developed by Self-Help Groups to the customers easily and efficiently. The platform also motivates housewives to showcase their individual talent by developing organic food products like vegetables and greens and promote them through Thirumathikart.

Meanwhile, the Thirumathikart delivery App benefits Self-Help Women in the employment of delivering the product to the customers. A five-day Executive Development Programme on “Marketing Strategies in the Digital Era:

Self-Promotion of SHG Products through Thirumathikart by Department of Computer Science Engineering and Dept of Instrumentation and Control Engineering, NITT” is to be conducted for launching the Thirumathikart mobile application and to train the interested SHGs and individuals. It will be helpful for the Self-Help Groups registered under Tiruchirappalli Magalir Thittam office.

This development programme mainly focuses on providing awareness towards the digitalisation of SHG products, and on training them for promoting their products through Thirumathikart. Thirumathikart will have a social benefit as it is used to empower women with sustainable income-generation options. Their skill set is improved by training them with the marketing knowledge empowering their economic and social position as a progressive initiative towards globalization. There is no registration fee for SHG members. The promotion of the Thirumathikart would be available from February 17.

As a significant step in promoting the green campus concept, e-Rickshaws have been introduced on the NIT, Tiruchy, premises with a flat fare of Rs 10 per head. The e-Rickshaws have been operated by TransVaahan, Bangalore, who had been successfully running 10 e-Rickshaws on the IISc campus for the past two years for the use of the students, staff and visitors. According to the officials from NIT, Tiruchy, TransVaahan would start with three e-Rickshaws on trial basis and add two more later based on the success of the scheme and would be increased up to 10 e-Rickshaws. The capital cost of the e-Rickshaws and the operating expenses including battery maintenance and driver salary will be borne by TransVaahan and they also will be paying the electricity charges based on the metre reading through the charging stations. The e-Rickshaw will have the capacity to carry four persons and a flat fare of Rs 10 per head per trip will be collected, irrespective of the distance.