With Stitching As Her Means, Rajasthan's Gomi Devi Becomes The Sole Bread Earner In Her House

Married to an opium addict, when she barely 15, Gomi Devi, lived a hard life with no stable source of income. When she had her first child at 16, she realised that she needed to find a job and become financially independent. At this juncture, Usha Silai School helped her take control of her life.

Gomi underwent a 7-day training of sewing and embroidery and soon began a Silai school of her own. She charges Rs. 50 per student and is now earning almost Rs. 7000 every month.

20-25 women and girls have received training in her school. She also takes tailoring orders from other clients in her village and earns about Rs. 100 to Rs. 150 per order.

She feels it's easier for her students to make a living through stitching, as they can sew clothes at home and earn almost Rs. 100 per piece they work on.

Besides running a Silai school, Gomi Devi is also part of a self-help group that travels to many nearby villages educating women about vaccination for children. She has been an active part of the group and has convinced 10 other women to join the group and perform street plays to raise awareness about health and sanitation issues.

Gomi has now become an icon of change in a place where women have had to hide their face behind a veil, lived silently and held no authority to voice their views. Inspired by her state's Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, Gomi Devi is constantly trying to encourage as many women as possible to step outside their confinement and constraints to find a better life.

Adopt a Silai School

Do you want to be a part of the huge change that Usha Silai School is bringing about in the lives of millions of rural women? With just a simple click of a button, you can now contribute towards the opening of an Usha Silai School or support various other aspects of the school.

About the Initiative

Kushalta Ke Kadam, an initiative by NDTV and USHA, aims at empowering women from rural India and encourages them to become entrepreneurs by taking up sewing and training others in their respective communities. Since 2011 Usha Silai Campaign has trained more than 3.95 lakh rural women within five years, with 17,000 Silai schools, spanning over 9272 Indian villages in India.

Kushalta Ke Kadam in Season 4 has returned with new goals and vision. The new season will witness the establishment of the new cluster in Kashmir, apart from the existing four clusters setup last year. The women from volatile Kashmir will work with well-known fashion designer Rohit Bal and get an unique opportunity to learn from him and make clothes for him. The work done by the Silai School women will be presented at Lakme Fashion week 2019.

Know More

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