Bhagalpur, March 2 – Traditional Indian sweets have been a staple in every household during festive seasons, such as Holi or Diwali; however, the flavour of the season this year is ‘Millet Malpua’.
In Bhagalpur district of Bihar, this unique recipe has become a huge hit with residents, with hundreds from the surrounding areas making a beeline to place orders for Holi.
Interestingly, this unique dessert wasn't a spontaneous creation. Priyanka, a woman entrepreneur who started a millet business some time ago under the PMFME (PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme), is the driving force behind this delicious dessert.
Given the prevalence of adulterated food and sweet supply chains during festive seasons, she came up with the idea of developing healthy, nutritious desserts, and thus, ‘Millet Malpua’ was born. It has become popular not only in the local area but also in the surrounding neighbourhood, with people flocking to her door to place their orders.
Sharing her entrepreneurial journey, Priyanka told IANS that she started her enterprise after taking a loan of Rs 1.17 lakh under the PMFME scheme.
Today, she has earned the title of ‘millet lady’ of Bhagalpur.
Speaking to IANS, Priyanka, also known as Priya Soni, expressed her gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the venture and said that today, women feel liberated and empowered because of women-centric schemes launched under his governance.
Today, she is producing 60 different millet products and developing millet products suitable for consumption from morning to night.
Some of her products include Millet khichdi, millet kheer, millet halwa, and millet idlis, which have found considerable demand in the markets.
Notably, Malpua is made with jowar, bajra, ragi, and various types of millets. Even people suffering from diabetes can consume it.
The PMFME scheme, launched on June 29, 2020, is a central government scheme focused on the growth and formalisation of micro food units across the country.
The scheme is part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan and supports the Vocal for Local vision in the food processing sector. It provides financial, technical, and business assistance to entrepreneurs for setting up new units or upgrading existing ones.
