Ministry of Rural Development has signed five Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRD&PR), Hyderabad, and the State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs) of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Telangana to boost interventions under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM). The agreements were signed on September 19 at the NRLM Conference Hall in New Delhi.
The collaboration aims to strengthen community institutions, enhance livelihood opportunities, and promote digital innovations across these states, which have been recognised for their pioneering work in digitisation. Bihar has also emerged as a leader in Food, Nutrition, Health, and WASH (FNHW) initiatives.
The MoUs were signed by T.K. Anil Kumar, Additional Secretary (Rural Livelihoods), Ministry of Rural Development, along with Dr. Vanishree Joseph, Director of NRLM Resource Cell, NIRD≺ Ananya Mittal, CEO of JSLPS (Jharkhand); senior officers representing Karuna Vakati, State Mission Director of Andhra Pradesh SRLM; Himanshu Sharma, CEO of Bihar Jeevika; and D. Divya, CEO of Telangana SERP.
Under the agreement, NIRD&PR will focus on training SRLM functionaries and community cadres, creating a pool of multi-thematic resource persons, conducting leadership programmes, and documenting best practices. It will also provide technical and strategic support to make rural communities more resilient and self-reliant.
Government also highlighted the role of National Resource Organizations (NROs) in developing LokOS, a digital platform that improves governance and facilitates smoother operations of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and their federations. The platform aims to enhance accountability, ensure financial integration, and empower rural communities through technology.
