Raipur, Jul 25 (PTI) President Ram Nath Kovind today interacted with members of women self-help groups (SHGs) in a village in Chhattisgarh's Naxal-hit Dantewada district.

Speaking to the women at Heeranar village, Kovind said in the last 10-15 years, significant transformation has taken place in the lives of people in the Bastar region.

Apart from providing basic infrastructure, the state government has done exemplary work for socio-economic development of the region, Kovind was quoted as saying in an official statement.

"On this auspicious day as I complete one year in office, I feel very delighted to spend quality time in Bastar with forest-dwellers," the president said.

He was accompanied by wife Savita Kovind, Chief Minister Raman Singh and School Education Minister Kedar Kashyap.

The women told the president that they were earning well by rearing and selling chickens of the famous Kadaknath breed and by running a mini rice-mill.

The president lauded the women, and also urged them to send their children to schools, saying that education opens the doors of development.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)