Ranchi: The Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS), under the state rural development department, on Thursday launched the ‘Jharkhand Incubator Programme’ to strengthen women-led rural micro and nano enterprises through incubation, mentorship, and business support, officials said.A total of 150 women-led rural enterprises will receive end-to-end support, including enterprise selection, mentorship, business development, technical training, financial and market linkages, branding, quality certification, and assistance in formalising their businesses.The three-year programme is being implemented in partnership with IIM Calcutta Innovation Park (IIMCIP). Department minister Deepika Pandey Singh said the partnership would provide sustained handholding support over the next three years.JSLPS at present supports over 1.54 lakh rural enterprises with an estimated annual turnover exceeding Rs 3,000 crore. As part of the initiative, a central incubation hub will be established in Ranchi, while five regional spoke centres will be set up to extend entrepreneurship support at the district and block levels.Department secretary Manoj Kumar said the initiative would provide a structured ecosystem to help rural entrepreneurs scale up their businesses. “Women associated with JSLPS have already demonstrated their potential through initiatives such as Palash and Aadiva. The incubation programme will provide them with the guidance and support needed to expand their enterprises,” he added.During the event, the Jharkhand Incubator Programme portal, incubator portal and Handloom Cluster web portal were also launched to improve digital access for women entrepreneurs, weavers, and other stakeholders.Technical sessions held on the inaugural day focused on rural entrepreneurship, market access, branding, digitalisation and the use of artificial intelligence in women-led enterprises.
