Driven by situational factors in the Malenad region, intellectuals at the Kavi-Kavya Trust in 1996, formed a new initiative called the "Charaka Gramodyog Unit", primarily to generate alternate reliable employment opportunities for rural women. Starting with just 2 hand-operated looms and 2 sewing machines near Heggodu village, this unit was later registered as a cooperative entity named "Charaka Mahila Vividhoddesha Kaigarika Sahakara Sangha" (Charaka) in 1996. The initiative has now carved its unique place in the handloom map of the country.