Bandhan and Axis Bank to scale-up Hard Core Poor Program to 50,000 families in West Bengal

Axis Bank, an Indian private bank, and Bandhan, a microfinance institution, work together in an initiative called Axis Bank and Bandhan Holistic Assistance (ABHA). ABHA will launch in a ceremony on 13 August 2011 at Rabindra Bhavan, Baruipur, South 24 Parganas.  Bandhan was set up with the objective of poverty alleviation and women empowerment through its microfinance activities. It also does development work thought its not for profit entity. The ABHA initiative plans to reach out to 50,000 poorest-of-the-poor families from two poverty-stricken districts, Murshidabad and South 24 Parganas, in West Bengal.  The Chief Guest of the ceremony will be Dr. K. C. Chakrabarty, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as the Chief Guest.  ABHA’s criteria to be considered in its program would be the poor with few or no asset base, highly vulnerable to any shocks and mainly dependent on wage labour. ABHA’s innovative poverty reduction strategy involves a 24-month initiative with promotional and protective elements. The promotional elements include asset creation for entrepreneurial use and livelihood generation, enterprise and confidence-building trainings, and basic financial services. The protective elements include basic health services, consumption support, and individualized hand holding support.  Around 27 per cent of the population in West Bengal lives below poverty line. There are about 4,50,000 poor families in Murshidabad and South 24 Parganas. 

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