Empowering Women With Disabilities And Fostering Environmental Consciousness In Dholka, Gujarat

In pursuit of environmental consciousness, an outstanding initiative is unfolding in the town of Dholka, located in the western state of Gujarat. Here, the Usha Silai Label Production Centre is not only encouraging environmental consciousness by repurposing old banners but also empowering women with disabilities through skill training. In a society where disability is often misconstrued as an inability to think and work, people with disabilities face challenges in securing stable employment opportunities. Moreover, encouraging women to step out of their homes and into the Silai School comes with its challenges that demand substantial efforts in the field, meticulous planning, and considerable time and patience before tangible results are achieved.

Sharing her experience, Meenaben Valand, Master Trainer, Usha Silai School, Dholka, Gujarat, said,

To start with, I visited several villages. There were people interested in sewing, who either had physical disabilities or were facing issues at home. I brought them here and spoke to them. I told them I had been coming here and working despite my condition. So why can't you? I asked them to support me. Then these women started coming here from their villages.

Vepari Lubna Banu, Trainee, Usha Silai School, said,

I used to stay at home. I haven't studied much because of my eyesight problem. I came to know that Usha Silai School is running a training programme here. I felt that I had to learn this skill.

Overcoming societal misconceptions about the capabilities of women with disabilities, the Usha Silai School has become a beacon of hope. The programme works closely with the Blind People's Association in Ahmedabad which helps in reaching out to different communities that can benefit from this initiative. Dr. Bhushan Punani, General Secretary of the Blind People's Association in Ahmedabad, underlined their goal of reaching the unreached and said,

We want to reach the people in remote rural areas, for their empowerment and rehabilitation. The concept is that we train a group of women who are mostly women with disabilities or poor women, who in turn train other women in the village. So, one woman becomes a school and she trains other women in the school how to operate the sewing machine.

Vijaykumar Jethabhai Gohel, Programme Coordinator, Usha Silai School, Gujarat, said,

Andhjan Mandal or Blind People's Association is our NGO partner in Gujarat. Their job is to identify women with disabilities across the villages, understand their situation and help them enroll in the Silai School training programmes.

It all started with a thought that sparked into a viable idea - being able to turn plastic banners into bags. This idea soon transformed into a vocation for many of the women here at the Usha Silai School in Dholka, Gujarat. Meenaben Valand, Master Trainer, Usha Silai School said,

Our focus right now is on the banners. They cause a lot of pollution in our environment. We took some banners from Usha and Andhjan Mandal (Blind People's Association) and started making bags from them. We have been working on this project for the last four to five months.

And it's not just banners, other plastic materials like aprons are also turned into bags over here. Bringing these bags into public circulation is a feat the Blind People's Association and Usha Silai School have jointly been able to achieve. Emphasising the positive impact, Dr. Bhushan Punani said,

We have a regular outlet in our institute called 'Magic Fingers', where these environmentally friendly bags are available for sale. There are a lot of people in the community who are willing to buy the products and support women with disabilities because they want to support innovations. To me, it's a win-win situation. The nation benefits, the women benefit, the community benefits, and we protect the environment.

Once the women complete their training at the Silai School, they venture out to chart their careers, often by working right from their own homes. Many of the women pass on their skills to other women like them, continuing the chain of skill and employment. Leelaben Gambhirbhai Jadav, Trainer, Usha Silai School, said,

After the training, I got a machine from Usha. Now I can work even if stay at home. It has given me a lot of happiness. I feel empowered, now that I can work from the comfort of my home.

Explaining how the initiative goes beyond training, Vijaykumar Jethabhai Gohel, Programme Coordinator said,

Now, with Usha's support, we thought of taking it to the next level that is how to help these women get more work and more orders. So, we have registered many women as Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and they even got the registration number. And we have also got them registered in the Government e Marketplace (GeM) portal so that they can get bigger orders.

The collaboration between the USHA Silai School and the Blind People's Association not only focuses on livelihoods but also takes care of the well-being of the women involved. Eventually, at the end of the day, for every woman, it's about achieving the dreams they had set out in search of.

Seema Banu Iliyasmiya Chauhan, one of the trainees at the Usha Silai School programme cannot speak but she, like many other women, has high aspirations. Sharing her plans, Seema said,

Once I get a sewing machine after completing the Usha Silai School training programme, I will use it to earn money by making bags.

Convenient hours, accessibility for women with disabilities, proximity to their homes, the promise of a sewing machine at the end of the training, and the prospect of earning a living from home - all of these have set a solid foundation for the women who come to the Usha Silai School, a foundation that is encouraging more and more women to learn and then earn for themselves.

Highlighting the organisation's commitment to sustainability, Mary Rupa Tete, Vice President, Usha Social Services, said,

USHA as an organisation has always been a promoter of sustainable practices and the USHA Silai School programme is also aligned with that vision. This year we took many new initiatives in line with our vision which include setting up a Training Cum Production (TCP) Centre in Asia's cleanest village which is in Meghalaya's Mawlynnong. Then we entered into a partnership with Tata Power renewable microgrids where a TCP Centre has been set up and sewing machines are being run on solar energy. We have also entered into partnerships with many organisations where we are doing upcycling where products are being made from waste material and we are also promoting the use of environment-friendly natural fibres like Jute to make products.