Pariksha SaathiNational SARAS Mela Moves Outside Delhi-NCR for the First Time: Vijayawada to Host It from 13 to 31 October
For the first time, the National SARAS Mela — the Rural Development Ministry's showcase for products made by women's self-help groups (SHGs) — is being held outside Delhi-NCR. The ministry said on 12 October 2026 that the 2026 edition will run from 13 to 31 October at Punnami Ghat in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, organised together with the state's Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP). More than 1,500 women from SHGs in over 30 States and Union Territories are expected to sell handicrafts, handloom products and regional food, alongside cultural programmes. President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to inaugurate the mela on 15 October, with Andhra Pradesh Governor S. Abdul Nazeer, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan expected to attend. The mela is tied to the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and the goal of creating 6 crore 'Lakhpati Didis' by 2029; it will feature a Lakhpati Didi Pavilion, a 16-foot installation called 'SHAKTI', and links to the eSARAS online marketplace. NABARD and NIRDPR are among its supporting partners.
Drafted with AI assistance from the official PIB release linked above and checked against it by a second AI pass. Not line-edited by a human.
Learning context
The SARAS Aajeevika Mela is a marketing initiative organised at national and state levels under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), the Ministry of Rural Development’s flagship livelihoods scheme launched in 2011. It brings rural women’s self-help groups formed under the mission onto one platform to sell their products directly to buyers, cutting out middlemen.
Reference: Rajya Sabha Secretariat — parliamentary reply on SARAS Aajeevika Mela
Check yourself: is SARAS Mela a standalone central scheme on its own?
No — it is a marketing initiative organised under DAY-NRLM, the Ministry of Rural Development’s broader rural livelihoods mission, not a separate scheme in itself.
Revision task: note why this edition is significant (the first time it has moved outside Delhi-NCR, to Vijayawada) and its dates, keeping these separate from the standing fact about DAY-NRLM above.
Test yourself
The 2026 National SARAS Mela, a showcase for products of women's self-help groups, is being held outside Delhi-NCR for the first time. In which city?
Show the answer
Answer: Vijayawada
The mela runs from 13 to 31 October at Punnami Ghat, Vijayawada; it is tied to DAY-NRLM and the goal of 6 crore 'Lakhpati Didis' by 2029, and President Droupadi Murmu is to inaugurate it on 15 October.
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