The Odisha government has signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre for Research in Schemes and Policies (CRISP) and the NSE Foundation to implement Project BLESS.
It is a three-year initiative aimed at preventing distress migration by strengthening livelihood opportunities, skill development and entrepreneurship among vulnerable rural families.
Key Highlights
Project BLESS aims to identify families vulnerable to migration before they leave their villages and connect them with sustainable livelihood opportunities, skill training, financial services and government welfare schemes.
The initiative will cover 69 blocks across eight districts — Balangir, Bargarh, Kalahandi, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Koraput, Nabarangpur and Rayagada.
The scheme is expected to benefit around 8.81 lakh rural families and 86,468 Self-Help Groups (SHGs). Around 550 Jeevika Sakhis selected from SHGs will assist in implementing the programme at the grassroots level.
The project will use SHGs, Cluster Level Federations (CLFs) and Gram Panchayat Level Federations (GPLFs) to deliver support. A mobile application-based vulnerability assessment will be conducted at the household level to identify families at risk.
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