Alternative livelihoods for 500 ragpicker families

Over the past 5 years Tiljala SHED’s livelihood programme has helped lift up 630 families in some of Kolkata’s worst slums by making small business loans to vulnerable women and supporting them through regular training. The women apply for loans in small groups (Credit Interest Groups or CIGs) of around 4 individuals. Each woman sets up her own business but the whole group is responsible for applying for and repaying the loans. The recovered loans are then redeployed to other CIGs. This scheme has worked very well, helping many families out of extreme poverty and enabling them to keep their children in education (rather than child labour or early marriage). The women have been incredibly resourceful and many have been able to pay private school fees or invest their earnings in expanding their businesses. When I visit the field and meet the families I sense that this programme has injected a huge amount of energy and hope into the community.

In previous reports you can read the individual stories of many of our beneficiaries. Since the start of the pandemic everything changed. Not only were these women largely unable to continue their businesses (lockdown prevented anyone from going onto the streets) but also their husbands lost their incomes.  Tiljala SHED had to switch almost overnight to relief work. All loan repayments were put on hold. No new loans were disbursed – and Tiljala SHED’s staff turned their efforts to sourcing food and medical supplies and then distributing ration packs across large swathes of central Kolkata. We distributed food parcels to 6500 families in 2020 and a further 6500 in 2021.  It has been an enormous effort and all undertaken by a small group of staff and volunteers who were willing and able to take on this huge task. I am so proud of all of them.

And now that India has come through the worst of the current wave of COVID infection and the economy is up and running again, we have restarted the livelihood programme, conducting training sessions across all four communities. Loan repayments have started coming in again as our beneficiaries have revived their businesses and we are looking forward to kickstarting the programme fully in 2022.

• Summary of Programme 2016 - 21 (PDF)
  

Arjina is 32 years old. She is a rag picker by profession and stays in one of the pavements near ESI Hospital. There are five members in the family (2 daughters + 1 son). All the members of the family stay near ESI hospital on the pavements under very extreme conditions.

Her elder daughter studies in Class IV and her younger daughter studies in Class II. Her son studies in Kindergarten. Arjina and her husband work together as a rag picker. They earn around Rs.150 to 200 per day. But this income is not enough for running the household expenses. Sometimes the family goes to bed without food. She took Rs.20,000 as a loan Dated on 05.05.18 from Tiljala SHED alternative livelihood program. She sells detergent powder and most of her income comes from rag picking. She repaid Rs.16,000 and the rest Rs.4,000 is due.

After the lockdown and covid pandemic situation her earning has drastically reduced to Rs.50 to 100 a day. They sleep in an open pavement. During the rainy season, the conditions become very difficult as they sleep under a tarpaulin. Local goons and police are a daily harassment for this family. The young girls do not have any security. The local political goons drink alcohol nearby their temporary makeshift structure and takes away water which is being stored for the family drinking purpose. Since they are basically on the footpath, diseases are more prevalent among them. Diarrhoea, Malaria, High Fever, Coughing are regular problems and found in almost all the homes. Previous 2020 lockdown to now June 2021 she cannot repay. Her situation is very bad. After the last year pandemic things started getting little better from this year February 2021 and she was in regular contact with our livelihood team and attended all the group meetings. But after the second wave of the Covid the state government announced lockdown from April 2021 and she again had to suffer the same situation like last year.

She is hopeful that she will revive her income once the lockdown is eased, and situation becomes normal. She is committed to transform her life through her hard work and dedication.

There are many beneficiries like Arjina who have been struggling because of the pandemic situation. The income has gone down to almost Nil and with little support from government and NGOs they are able to survive. As soon as the pandemic situation gets better she will revive her financial condition back to normal. Tiljala SHED has been assisting these families during the pandemic and we have organised Emergency Food Distribution for such families who have  suffered the most during the pandemic.