Empowering through enterprise: How PURE India Trust is transforming lives across rural India

If he was asked a few years ago, Prashant Pal would have never predicted the course that his life took. 

With a decade-long career across TATA, Accenture, and Fareportal, Pal was firmly rooted in the corporate world, working in management, operations, and community engagement. But everything shifted during his time in the Philippines when the Anna Hazare movement erupted in India. 

"After a decade in the corporate world, I was inspired by the Anna Hazare movement,” Pal, founder of the Pushp-Kiran Union for Real Enlightenment (PURE) India Trust, tells SocialStory. Inspired by Anna Hazare and later meeting both Hazare and Kiran Bedi in person, Pal returned to India in 2012 with a renewed mission—to serve. 

What began as weekend volunteering soon evolved into a life-changing pursuit. By 2013, PURE India Trust was born in Delhi, to support women entrepreneurs and create sustainable livelihood opportunities through support and training. He continued balancing corporate life and volunteering until 2016, when he quit to dedicate himself full-time to PURE India Trust.

Building from the ground up

The early years of PURE India Trust were marked by struggle. “Funding was a huge challenge initially. We were passionate, but resources were limited,” Pal recalls. Despite juggling his corporate job with social initiatives until 2016, he stayed committed. The trust started in Delhi and later expanded to Rajasthan, eventually reaching 17 states across India.

In 2020-21, PURE India Trust began receiving corporate CSR support, which dramatically improved its outreach and capacity. “Once corporates saw the on-ground impact of our work, partnerships began to grow,” says Pal.

Empowering women entrepreneurs

The core of PURE’s work today lies in its Women Entrepreneurship Programme. Under this initiative, the trust identifies and equips poor, underserved, and widowed women with basic skills and the motivation to start a business. These women are located with the help of Anganwadi workers, ASHA workers, and village leaders.

Once identified, each woman receives a grant of Rs 12,500 to Rs 15,000, allowing her to purchase raw material or equipment. PURE also provides support in training, promotion, and branding, helping them formally launch their business. “Our role doesn’t end at funding. We guide them for 12 months and track their growth,” says Pal.

In the last five years alone, PURE India Trust has enabled 5,534 women-owned businesses, and 98% of these are still operational. “Earlier they were housewives and did not earn any money. Today, these women collectively earn Rs 45 crore every year,” he proudly shares.

One such woman is Poonam from Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, who lost her husband to a violent act. “Despite my experience in parlour work, I lacked the funds to start my own business. In my husband’s absence, managing expenses and providing education for my daughters became arduous,” she says.

After attending a meeting at the local Anganwadi, she received PURE’s support. “Initially immobile due to lack of work, the Trust enabled me to kickstart my parlor business. Now, with my parlor earnings, I effectively manage household expenses, earning ₹8,000+ monthly while staying at home.”

PURE is also helping differently-abled women support themselves and their families through their initiatives. Among these beneficiaries is Saroj, a differently-abled woman from the village of Sidhrawali in Haryana. Her husband’s meagre income couldn’t support their family of six.

“However, through a village meeting, I discovered that PURE India Trust extends support to widows and disabled women. Upon filling out the necessary forms, I received groceries assistance. With this aid, I established my own shop, bringing immense joy and relief. Now, I comfortably manage our household expenses, earning over Rs 10,000 monthly,” she says.

Guiding futures: career mentorship for students

Another pillar of PURE’s impact is its Career Guidance Programme for government school students. Aimed at students from grades 8 to 12, the programme introduces them to 100 career options through sessions, workshops, and one-on-one mentorship. “We conduct one on one mentorship sessions with students to guide them and further support them to apply for relevant scholarships,” Pal says. 

PURE has distributed a career book, posted career charts in over 200 schools, and helped students explore passions and apply for scholarships. The programme has directly impacted over 50,000 students, and its materials have been adopted by the Rajasthan government, giving career awareness to more than 15 lakh students across the state.

Livelihood through skills and collective ownership

Additionally, the trust also runs a Skill Development Programme, which operates as a group livelihood project. Under the project, women are organised into groups to produce market-ready goods, share profits, and develop a collective economic identity. Two Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) have been established—one in Jaipur and one in Kota—both fully owned and managed by women.

“These women are not just earning money; they are building their confidence and identity,” Pal notes. The trust ensures that the supply chains, market access, and financial literacy support are in place for sustained success.

Obstacles on the path to change

Despite its achievements, PURE India Trust continues to face systemic challenges. Building trust in new geographies is a gradual process. “The trust factor in any geography is difficult, it takes time to get people to believe you. Once we show them success stories, they gradually start trusting,” says Pal.

Another challenge is recruiting and retaining skilled personnel at the grassroots level. “But we learn the rules of the game and we train people,” he adds. The cooperation from state governments, especially in Rajasthan, has played a vital role in PURE’s success so far.

Looking ahead: a vision for 2030

As of now, PURE India Trust has a bold goal: to establish 25,000 women-owned enterprises across India by 2030. The focus will remain on expanding sustainable livelihood options, improving educational access, and strengthening communities from within.

Reflecting on his own journey, Pal says, “We do not consider every obstacle as a challenge, because we are in the social development sector, and every day there is a new challenge—we take it as an opportunity.”