A green company in a grey market

There was a time when Payinthulasi, a 40-year old herb gatherer of village Utchananthal in Virudunagar district of Tamil Nadu, had to trudge to the towns of Virudunagar and Madurai to sell her 'produce'. It used to be a livelihood with extremely limited choices. Then, two years ago, a public limited company called Gram Mooligai Company Limited came to her village. It wanted to collect the plants she gathered, at much better prices. Moreover, it made her a shareholder. Today her fortunes have changed