With Support from Madhya Pradesh Council of Science and Technology, Govt. of MADHYA PRADESH, SVSS has conducted training cum awareness programme in Mandla district covering the 15 women SHGs in two blocks. The scarcity of fuel for domestic or commercial use in rural areas has become a chronic and severe problem today. People, especially women, have to spend several hours collecting firewood from distant and, often dangerous location. This is also causing severe depletion of forests and tree resources. To a large segment of the rural poor, fossil fuels like coal and kerosene are out of reach, apart from fact that their reserve are fast dwindling. On other hand, it has been estimated that in India at least 150 million tones of forestry waste and 350 million tones of agriculture residue are available every year. A major portion of these is either not utilized or is used very inefficiently.

SVSS conducted awareness cum training for tribal’s women’s SHGs under the transfer of new technology for efficient utilization as fuel, prominent among these being fluided-bed combustion, briquetting of fuel after pyrolysis and addition of binders and briquetting of forestry /agricultural waste without binders taking advantage of the lignin present. Conversion of biomass into charcoal briquettes would not only benefit users but would also generate employment in rural areas. It can also be utilized to contain invasive weeds like lantana which have a high calorific value. Numerous charcoal production systems and introduction of improved techniques have been available or proposed for applications ranging from a very small subsistence level operation with mud beehive, drum and mold methods to very large capital intensive operations with brick beehive and retort methods. Introduction of appropriate systems must take into account a number of socio- economic and ecological factors.

Our outcome under this project that women produces briquette and use it for domestic purposes increases efficiency of use about 30-40% above the 9-15% of wood. The briquette also prevents the problem of smoke and is hygienic and less energy intensive. The calorific values of briquettes of this biomass are equivalent to Grade B and Grade C coal.876 SHGs Women are trained for briquetting making based on biomass generate income for women SHGs the labor involved in the processing is also a part of employment generation and has therefore been included in the income.

Results and discussion

It was observed through the results that the empowerment of women has changed in a positive direction after establishing their work; according to the indicators of the study, the Women's Empowerment Index has changed from 0.61 to 1.26. It was also found that entrepreneurship has a positive and significant impact on women's decision-making within the family, and therefore, it was suggested through research to increase the intervention from the government and related organizations with more initiatives that contribute to the possibility of increasing women's education and their financial ability to open new enterprises.

This activity is promoting a millet-based diverse farming system to cope up with uncertain agro-climatic conditions brought about by deforestation. Millet farming is profitable and can protect and conserve the local ecosystem. There are 22 different types of minor millet that are rich in vitamins and grow and mature at different times, so the use of water and soil nutrients remains low and keeps the soil fertility unaltered. This activity is empowering tribal women farmers to have access and control over natural resources and find avenues to use it more efficiently to improve the quality of their own lives, ensure household food security and protect the environment for future generations.