Here Is How USHA Training And Production Centres Are Transforming Lives
The USHA Silai Training and Production Centres are central facility created especially for rural women to assemble, get trained in sewing and stitching and also make products for the market. The Bhagwan Singh Memorial Foundation in Punjab, SANKALP NGO in Odisha and Galaxy enterprise in Meghalaya are three such centres that are empowering the rural women and making a difference.
The training and production centre model came was established in 2015, and the benefit to the women associated with it was immediately apparent. The training and production centre is specially designed to give advance training of 15 days to women- 2 days mechanical and 13 days of sewing and stitching to the women.
As part of the training and production centre model, the USHA Silai School programme brings its expertise of specialised training, customised to the needs of the partner, which could be anything from bags and uniforms to accessories, garments and so on. The training is then given at two levels - basic and advanced - depending on the skill of the learners.
After training, Galaxy Enterprise appointed a coordinator to handhold beneficiaries and manage centre on a day-to-day basis. The women entrepreneurs received orders from the local market and delivered around 30 nighties in April this year, prior to the lockdown and collectively earned Rs. 12,000. Women at the production centre also stitched petticoats and earned Rs. 6000. Currently, an order of 50 frocks is in the final stage which will bring them Rs. 25,000.
NGO Sankalp, in collaboration with the USHA Silai school program is another organisation that is making efforts to create potential women entrepreneurs. The centre established by the NGO is the only skill development institute in 5 village panchayats. It has created 20 women entrepreneurs, and distributed 8,000 masks in nearby villages, free of cost during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Do you want to be a part of the huge change that Usha Silai School is bringing about in the lives of millions of rural women? With just a simple click of a button, you can now contribute towards the opening of an Usha Silai School or support various other aspects of the school.
Kushalta Ke Kadam, an initiative by USHA Silai School and NDTV has entered its eighth season. The aim is to empower more women across rural India by teaching them sewing skills and helping them open new doors of opportunities for themselves. The initiative encourages rural women to become financially independent and entrepreneurs by taking up sewing and training others in their respective communities.
Since 2011, the USHA Silai School initiative has trained more than 12 lakh rural women through over 33,000 Silai schools, spanning over 20,751 villages across India.
The women earn Rs. 4,000 – 5,000 per month on an average, with the highest recorded monthly earning being Rs. 84,000 in a month. This earning works as a catalyst towards building their self-confidence, reducing gender inequities, and raising their stature within their families and in society at large.
Written by Team NDTV | Friday January 02, 2026Usha Silai Schools give second chances to women like Srinagar's Marifat, who rebuilt after widowhood; Madhya Pradesh's Jyoti, escaping abuse to run her own center; and Rajasthan's Vimla, rising from child marriage to tailor and teacher. Through nine-day training, they gain sewing skills, confidence, and income proving one stitch mends lives and inspires communities.
- Team NDTV | Friday December 26, 2025
A new wave of corporate-community partnerships is equipping rural women with skills, income and confidence
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USHAs Silai School Programme empowers women across India by turning sewing into independence. Women become trainers and leaders, transforming their lives and communities through skills, confidence, and income
- Written by Team NDTV | Thursday December 11, 2025
USHA Silai School is empowering women across India by turning sewing skills into leadership and income. Women like Lalita, Yashira, and Pushpakala have become mentors, reviving traditions and building stronger communities. Their stories show how one skill can weave a brighter future.
- Written by Team NDTV | Wednesday December 10, 2025
From homemaker to celebrated teacher, Lakhi Debnath transformed her life via Usha Silai School, funding her daughters' education and buying land through tailoring
- Written by Team NDTV | Tuesday December 09, 2025
In Takkar Birpur village, Jammu and Kashmir, Kanta Devi escaped domestic violence and poverty through the Usha Silai School's tailoring training. Earning ₹10,00020,000 monthly, she now teaches women in border areas while inspiring her daughter Tanya to dream of a bourtique
