Mannam Social Service Society
With a view to initiate social service activities, a new department of social service was formed in the year 2006 at the NSS Head Office. The initiative is the brainchild of our Honourable General Secretary Sri. G Sukumaran Nair. The new department, called Mannam Social Service Society (MSSS), has been formed at all the taluk levels and registered under the Charitable Societies Registration Act, 1860. The societies have been functioning as the social service wing of the NSS Taluk Unions, at the taluk levels. The Thiruvananthapuram Taluk Mannam Social Service Society, formed as per this initiative, functions as the social service wing of NSS and the Thiruvananthapuram Taluk NSS Karayoga Union.

Thiruvananthapuram Taluk NSS Karayoga Union MSSS

Details of micro-enterprises
-
Beauty Parlour
-
Catering Unit
-
Common mess
-
Garment making unit
-
Hire Service
-
Snacks and Pickle unit
Women Self Help Groups

Women empowerment is one of the major activities of Mannam Social Service Society. As part of the women empowerment programme, we have initiated a massive campaign for organizing SHGs. The main objectives of the SHGs are social and economic empowerment of women. So far, 832 Women SHGs, comprising 10-20 members each, have been formed with an aggregate membership of 12,472 women in Thiruvananthapuram Taluk. The majority of the members of the groups belong to economically backward families. The SHGs promote thrift and credit activities. A large number of these SHGs have started income generating activities.
Weekly Meeting of Women SHGs
The activities of MSSS are monitored and co-ordinated by a co-ordinator, who is a well experienced in this field, Under him, 15 female regional co-ordinators work as facilitators. These coordinators have been imparted training and they are capable of providing all guidance and assistance right from the formation of the SHG to its smooth functioning.
Bank Linkage

The Dhanlaxmi Bank and the Thiruvananthapuram Taluk Co-operative Society are our major banking partners in this field. These banks have adopted a separate micro-credit policy towards the SHGs in respect of the rate of interest of the linkage loans, quantum of linkage loans sanctioned etc sponsored by Thiruananthapuram Taluk Mannam Social Service Society. The main highlights of the SHG movement is that all the SHGs are savings-linked and 60% are credit linked. Total thrift comes to the tune of Rs. 9.98 crores. So far, SHG members has availed about Rs.30 crores as linkage loan.
Joint Liability Group

NABARD facilitates the formation of JLGs with a view to promote SHG members as entrepreneurs. One Joint Liability Group (JLG) consists of 4-10 members. The members of the JLGs shall be either men or women. Under the Thiruvananthapuram Taluk MSSS, as many as 132 JLGs, consisting of 766 members, have been functioning. Of these, 60 JLGs are credit-linked. JLGs registered under Thiruvananthapuram Taluk MSSS have been running beauty parlours, catering units, garment making units etc.
Integrated Poultry Scheme

With the support of the Thiruvananthapuram Taluk Co-operative Society and BSS, a leading non-governmental organization in the state, an integrated poultry scheme has been implemented. The programme is implemented through JLGs consisting of 4-10 members.
Each beneficiary is given 25 chicks, cages, medicine and feed. The total project cost for one unit is Rs.18,000. A loan of Rs.73 lakhs has been availed for setting up these units.
Mini Dairy Funding Project

In an effort to boost milk production in the taluk, we have initiated a mini dairy funding project with loan assistance from the Dhanlaxmi Bank and capital subsidy under DEDS scheme from NABARD. The project envisages purchase of two cows – one milch cow initially and the second to be purchased after 6 months. The total project cost is Rs 1.25 lakhs. A total of 104 diary units have been set up in Thiruvananthapuram Taluk
Organic Farming with the Support of Horticulture Mission

More than 50 SHGs consisting of 950 members in Venganoor, Pannangode, and Kazhakuttom are engaged in organic farming either in their own or leased land.
The Horticulture Mission has extended support by providing agriculture equipment, technical advice etc, for the project.

Interest Subsidy for linked-SHGs from Kerala State Welfare Corporation for Forward Community
The` purpose of the formation Kerala State Welfare Corporation for Forward Community is to provide all support, including financial aid, among the financially backward groups in the forward community. Kerala is the only state in India having such an organization. Sri. G. Sukumaran Nair, General Secretary, Nair Service Society, had taken earnest efforts for the formation of the Kerala State Welfare Corporation for Forward Community
During 2013-14, KSWCFC had sanctioned 2% subsidy to 90 bank-linked SHGs. During 2014-15 KSWCFC sanctioned 4% subsidy to 130 bank-linked SHGs. Subsidy applications for the year 2015-16, 2016-17,2017-18 have been submitted to KSWCFC.
Best Performing NGO Award

NSS has been selected as the best performing Non-governmental Organisation (NGO) for annual state-level best performance under the SHG bank-linkage programme in Kerala.
The award has been presented for excellence in the field of micro finance movement. The NSS had bagged this award for three consecutive years, during 2014-15, 2015-16 & 2016-17.
Exhibition-cum-Sale of SHG Products

Numerous SHGs promoted by MSSS have started micro enterprises and have been producing a variety of items. However, marketing of the products has been a problem. In order to overcome this hassle, Vipanana Melas (Marketing Fairs) have been organized at the taluk level and Karayogam level. In connection with the Onam season, exhibition-cum-sales fairs are organized and about 100 SHGs participate in these marketing events. There was an average turnover to 6-8 lakhs during the mela conducted during the last Onam season.
Ashraya-e-centre
Four Ashraya-e-centres have been started to provide IT-enabled services to the public. The services include online payments, online registrations, train/air ticket bookings, and the like. As many as 16 women JLG members have benefited from this project.
Rural Mart
The Sree Mannathu Parvathy Amma Women Self Help Group consists of 20 members and is engaged in various types of microenterprises. The products from these SHGs lack proper marketing facilities, which cause huge losses to the group members. This has led to the setting up of a Rural Mart – a regular market for their products. The MSSS approached the NABARD to seek its sanction for setting up of the mart. Following this, NABARD sanctioned the proposal for setting up of the mart on November 17, 2016, and accordingly, it was set up on March 24, 2017.
The MSSS has played a vital role in the functioning of the mart. Training was imparted to ensure quality of goods, uninterruped supply, proper packing etc. Each group was also provided awareness on ensuring non- overlapping of the products so as to avoid losses to the members. Hence, an item-wise target was given to the participating SHGs.
First Sale by Smt.Sandhya Nagesh, AGM, NABARD
The Rural Mart set up at Thycaud, in front of the famous Sreesastha temple, was opened March 24, 2017. It was inaugurated by Sri. P. Raveendranath, the then Chief General Manager of NABARD. The inaugural meeting was chaired by Sri. M. Sangeeth Kumar, President of MSSS and Director Board Member, NSS. Smt. Sandhya Nagesh, AGM, NABARD, inaugurated the first sale.
More than 50 SHGs in and around Thiruvananthapuram Taluk promoted by various organizations are closely associated with the Rural Mart. The mart is managed by two sales persons belonging to the SHGs. Receipts are given to SHG members for the goods supplied to the market and price disbursed on sales basis. Sales of organic vegetables are made available on all Saturdays from 9 am to 11.30 am. There is high demand for organic vegetables, which are collected from organic farms managed and run by SHG members. The items from these small scattered farms are procured early in the morning and brought to the market as garden fresh products by SHG members.
Sales of Organic Vegetables at Rural Mart

All types of spices, gram flour, pickles, oils, chips, other snack items freshly prepared by the SHG members in the most hygienic manner, are procured at the mart. Millets and gram flour are washed hygienically and dried in sunlight and ground in the mill, avoiding any chance of adulteration.
From February 2018 onwards, the mart has procured 2 grinding machines and has engaged a women SHG member for preparing Dosa-Idli batter, which has a great demand as it contains no preservatives and the batters are sold on the same evening itself.
There is uninterrupted supply of organic eggs to the rural mart from JLG members. They are getting maximum price for the egg and the mart has made marketing very easy for JLGs, which are mostly set up in rural areas.
The Rural Mart has become a matter of discussion at SHG weekly meetings. The functioning of the mart as well as the members associated with mart has created an awareness among the other SHGs for setting up of micro-enterprises at the SHG levels. Overall, it is evident that the mart is a great success not only for the SHGs, but also to the community. While the community receives unadulterated organic fresh food items, the socio-economic status of the SHG members is also uplifted.
Micro-enterprises Development & Other Training Programmes

NABARD has sanctioned 3 MEDPs so far. The duration of the programme is 3 days and 13 days. All sanctioned MEDPs have been completed. Assistance by way of grants, with respect to MEDPs sanctioned, has been received. In addition to this, training has been imparted to SHG members with the help of Jhan Siksha Sansthan, Gandhian Study Centre, Youth Welfare Board etc.
Economic empowerment through Mannam Social Service Societies – a dream project of Sri. G. Sukumaran Nair, General Secretary, Nair Service Society, could be successfully materialized at the Thiruvananthapuram Taluk level also.