Dear Friends,
Greetings!!!
BDT wishes you a very Happy and Prosperous New Year 2011. We hope and pray that we all realise our potential and dreams in the coming years.
2010 is going to end and its time for reflection. 2011 is coming and its time to work for achieving the goals in 2011.
For BDT 2010 has been an exciting year. We are in our fourth year of existence and hence survived the initial three years that is crucial for any start up venture. BDT has survived in adverse condition is itself a testimony of its character. We started and were hit by 2008 Global crisis.As we are walking out of infant hood and growing as a child , we are hit by AP Crisis. We are not to be blame for both the crisis but we are the hardest hit by both crisis. In 2008, our supporters and well wishers bailed us out. This time our diversification strategy has helped us unknowingly. Our 50 team members are assured that there will be no lay offs and they can celebrate their new year with hope and better future. Those who have read ''WHO MOVED MY CHEESE'' can relate to BDT condition. AP Crisis has moved our cheese and luckily we have already planned for our new cheese and were getting it. Recent crisis has vindicated the BDT model of livelihood work along with microfinance programme. In the crisis, we have returned the money with an interest of 12% per annum to many of our initial contributors who helped to survive BDT three years ago. We are forever indebted to our initial contributors.
In Microfinance, the fresh credit has dried off since last three months and our portfolio is decreasing. We are waiting for fresh credit disbursement from our lenders. The repayment is continuously on time and we are able to repay all lenders on time and make some new loans in field. After achieving the breakeven, we have again slid into losses in our microfinance programme. We are now in thinking mode and asking for inputs to derisk the microfinance model from regulatory risk or risk from external environment. We have one of the most diversified lenders base in Bihar for our microfinance programme and well defined system and processes for a small microfinance operation like us. Rickshaw puller livelihood programme has also been growing along with microfinance programme.
Our Tasar Silk programme is running well and we have crossed the sales of Rs. 50 lakh in last six months. We are supporting the livelihood of around 100 weavers. We have founded Lodipur Bunkar Trust whose bank account has been opened in IDBI bank. The lodipur bunkar trust is the first Mutual Benefit Trust which will be getting shareholding in Tana Bana Marketing Private Limited which is the marketing company promoted by BDT founders. As marketing problem has been solved, we are struggling for working capital for growth. Our buyers include CFM, Rangsootra, Sadhna, Sewa and Fab India. FWWB has supported us with working capital loan.
Our agriculture programme has been started in Daudnagar, Aurangabad this year and is running on loan funds from well wishers till date. We have an outreach of around 500 farmers and in process of organising them into farmers club in 40 villages. These farmer club will have their own bank accounts and we hope to provide agri input extension and marketing linkage services through farmer clubs. We have crossed the sales of Rs. 20 lakh in seeds and vermicompost this year. We plan to procure 10000kg of rice from our member farmers. We hope to create storage space for farmers for better time value addition.
Our agarbatti stick making unit is in process of getting ready in Kahalgaon, Bhagalpur with support of NABARD. Around 500 women are now in process of being organised as SHG in three village around the unit. The machinery orders have been placed and we hope to begin production by end of Jan 2011. This unit has the potential to create 5000 employments in next five years in adjacent area. Besides, there will be bamboo plantation in 50 acres of Land in june 2011.
In 2010-2011,we have an outreach of 6000 families in three district and we are about to cross the revenue of Rs.100 lakh but very little surplus as a group. In 2011, we will be crossing an outreach of 10000 families in above four activities in three district and will try to cross the group revenue to Rs. 300 lakh. We are straddling the whole value chain of weaving, stick making and agriculture sectors. These are small pilots which are growing and taking shape. They have the potential to transform the whole sector and in this process create wealth for all stakeholders.
We are trying to catalyse million mutinies at individual household for development of Bihar. We feel happy when our office boy Ajit buys a TV at Diwali and has been able to support his brother education and family. We feel happy that Shivnandan, our weaver has been able to grow from weaver to a micro entrepreneur and is talking about sub contracting orders from us. We feel happy when our micro finance borrower Renu Devi who started in puja material shop in barari with our loan and share her growth story with our field officers over last two years. We feel happy when our field officers who started on paltry salary of Rs.500 a month are now earning 6000-8000 per month and able to command better respect and social status due to their improved economics. We have lots and lots of small success stories to share at micro level which we wish to document and share but can not do because of our inability to find time to documents them.
It our endeavour to share positive stories from Bihar and make you aware about the positive changes sweeping across Bihar at micro level.
We are grateful to support of you and donor agencies and financial institutions like FWWB, Ananya Finance, TMN,AIF, RGVN, IGS Basics, SIDBI, SBI, Union Bank, Indian Bank, PNB, NABARD, SDTT, AIACA, Ford Foundation, GTZ, KFW, WOG etc.
Thank you for reading such a long mail and Wish you and your family a very happy and prosperous 2011 !!!!
Regards
Dr Ravi Chandra
Managing Trustee
Bihar Development Trust
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