Sushma and her husband Satish, a young couple, manage their family’s vegetable business. Sushma says she was introduced to Grameen Koota by her mother-in-law Latha Jagadish, a Grameen Koota member for 8 years.

“I introduced my daughter-in-law to Grameen Koota so that they can take the business forward,” she says. “We benefitted immensely from timely access to capital,” says her daughter-in-law Sushma. “We focused exclusively on expanding the business. What I like about Grameen Koota is the range of their products. We can get loans from Rs. 1000 to Rs. 50,000 for various needs. This is really helpful,” she says. Sushma is very well informed about all Grameen Koota loan products, loan tenure and rate of interest. She has been a member for 4 years. “Earlier, the education loan was Rs. 5000, now it’s Rs. 15,000. It’s very useful. I’m using the education loan to send my daughter to school.

” Sushma says while access to capital has helped them expand their business, she equally values the access to knowledge. “We learn so many things from Jagruti,” she says. “It improves our knowledge about social issues.” Her mother-in-law, Latha, says that access to working capital is crucial to build a successful business. “We’ve been in this business for 30 years but before I became a member of Grameen Koota, it was always a struggle to get money when we needed it. Now, we not only get access to finance, Grameen Koota comes to our doorstep. It’s a great relief,” she concludes happily.