ROLE OF AN ORGANIZATION IN WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Current era is an era of Knowledge and possibilities as well as problems and conflicts. The nature has showed its introduction more and more as the man has improved their skills. At this time when the Government workers and programmes or laws did not reach to help human being here comes ‘NGO’, they do voluntary work and reach unto the last people of the society and being reliable for them.
So the people who are suffering from draught and storm are the ‘KACHCHHI’ and the NGO which is helping them is ‘Shrujan’. The work of Shrujan is very broad, at present anyone gating surprise when he show the NGO which is working at large level, and says Oho!! Although it is establishing in a corner area still it becomes international, and the person who care this NGO the quality of her work has developed so much. So this kind of good questions arrives in the mind of general people.
Recently this question is true but we could not believe that this was a small set-up. Earlier when it started and gating big now this is a NGO working for HANDICRAFT work to empowering women’s is a corner district of Kachchh -Gujarat. The name of this organization is Shrujan.

Origin:

The main source of establishing Shrujan is the draught of Kachchh during 1968. In Kachchh usually the drought has comes more than rain. It comes every now and then regularly. In Kachchh not only drought has comes but earthquake and storms are always visit it.
The farming gating almost impossible so the peoples of Kachchh are always suffering un-employment. So during these days the relief work has started by the Government and NGO’s, and it will get continuous till the monsoon comes. Therefore the people can survive.
In 1968 when draught comes in Kachchh, the relief work had been started by the Govt. and lots of NGO’s. At that time the Ram Krishna Mission was one of them. This comes from Rajkot for relief work. It has worked in the ‘Dhaneti’ village, the organization had started canteen for draught affected people. The head of this mission Swami Atmasthanandji has found that the grate people of Kachch have not accepted this free type of canteen help. They don’t want to go there and take food, but at that time they had no any other idea. So they remain silent. At that time the honor of owner of ‘Excel Industry’ Mr. Kantisen Shrof had come from Mumbai to help this Mission with his wife Smt. Chandaben Shrof and arrival of Chandaben had been the base of Shrujan.

Beginning:

The expert and excellent eyes has identified the HANDICRAFT WORK of these women’s. The cloths of Ahir Women’s are full of colors and HANDICRAFTS. Creative and Professional mind of Chandaben thought that these women’s has indigenous skills of HANDICRAFT WORK. Every woman knows it. Though this skills has been useful only for girls Marriage to give her to carry at her husband’s home. If this skill can become useful and sufficient for urban people than this HANDICRAFT WORK can reach at urban areas from village, and by that this women can earn money from HANDICRAFT WORK and they can be free from humbleness mind.
Chandaben meet all the women’s of Dhaneti and ask them that if they are able to do this kind of HANDICRAFT WORK for her? The women’s of that village said yes we can do it.
So they started with 30 women’s. They Prepared 100 HANDICRAFT WORK sari within 5 months. She found that among those women’s a parmaben can take leadership, than this work had started under her supervision. Now the question is that, what to do with these sari’s? Chandaben thought there should an exhibition for this sari’s, and after the eight months of draught they arrange an Exhibition of this HANDICRAFT WORK in Mumbai. Suddenly they have found good response. So the work that has started with Rs. 5000/- gives lots of courage and motivation to Chandaben and other women’s of the village. Letter on the two nephews of Chandaben Shrutiben and Ranjanben join this work.
The work has become steady women got employment, more and more women willing to join this group. Benefit increase more and more, now these activities enter in to next step. Chandaben now thought long planning. She thought we should start NGO if we want to make this activity permanent. So the rules should there. This activity should develop professionally as as the day goes, and then she chose ‘Shru’ from Shrutiben and ‘Jan’ from Ranjanben, and make a prefect name ‘SHRUJAN’. This word is truly belongs to this type of HANDICRAFT WORK.
In first step they thought that this should not export or not maintained as a fashion. Then the next question arise in the mind of Chandaben that how can she maintain this activity than? This is not daily use needs that always remain demandable. She got answer like that, that one hand she has to give training to these women’s and on the other hand she has to change test and thoughts of consumers and this work should be done by me.
As the time goes the work of Shrujan get bigger. Recently they work in kachchh with weaving work (‘shaul’, ‘patoda’, ‘mashru work’, ‘block printing’), ‘Ajrakh’ and discharge printing, and work with workers of ‘Bandhani’. The role of Shrujan in this programe is to experiment with different material and maintain the quality of work. With this they inspire this work in Orissa, Andhrapradesh, Tamilnadu, Uttarpradesh except Gujarat, and give advice about design.

Production:

Production team has given kit to working women in the village. They prepare the HANDICRAFT items. Then it returns to Shrujan. The working women get their money as the work finished, and they receive another kit. Production teams care all that and record all this types of work. They prepare a note of annual income of all working women’s.
In second step the price of prepared material has finalized by workers and production team jointly. ‘Buty’, ‘Bordes’, ‘patty’, ‘mitter’, they all will decided with some price.

Human Recourse:

In the development of Shrujan and this kind of work there is thought and creativity of Chandaben and 3000 working women’s and 60 workers. With the participation the Shrujan has reach in this mode.

Working Women’s:

Women’s of more than 100 villages are expert in HANDICRAFT WORK. They gate training for new knowledge and with this they gate regular employment and income. They inspired by the team. So it effects on their work quality, therefore in Earthquake their house had destroyed but they become safe of failing deprecation.
After many years of experience now Shrujan itself work as a educational and training NGO. It gives guidance to other NGO’s except Kachchh. The other model has started at Chhota Udaipur in Vadodara and also Naliya (Kachchh), Tharad (BK), etc places. The women workers has prepared as a business entrepreneur. They now also learn primary health, child development, agriculture, animal husbandry etc.

Effect of Shrujan:

According to women empowerment as we show last forty years it effect individually, socially and economically, it should be noticed with this medium lots of women of Kachchh can earn with remain at home, they can do this work without make lots change, With this money the self confidence has increase. With remain at home they can useful economically to their family, the status of women has increase because of these. Empowerment of women has increase with this economic porgramme. There were lots of problems regarding cast, religious in society but now they all are started to do their work together.
Earlier some women’s cannot move outside their home, because of their case, now they do. They become willing to learn more, because of Shrujan their skills has improved as well as their income.

International Honor:

Because of NGO ‘Shrujan’ eight women has get ‘UNICCO Award’ and eight businesses entrepreneur has prepared under it. ‘Shrujan’ now become a big mountain which touches the international limits and the ‘Rolex award-2006’ (International) is the part of this.
So the starts from little thought Shrujan now became a big tree. Chandaben and Kantisen has except some thought from Ram Krishna Mission which is the “welfare of self and the world” they except this in their mind and start Shrujan and this thought of them now become a medium of pride for Kachchhi Handicraft workers.

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