Training and equipping are key elements of life at Atulya Home, as we aim that each woman will become empowered to live independently when she graduates from Atulya. This includes:
Helping women complete their education as far as they can go
Coaching our residents how to resolve conflicts in relationships
Training women to persevere through challenges and struggles
Connecting women to paid internships and apprenticeships
Knowing vocational development is crucial, we provide training both in attaining job skills and in building a strong work ethic, through which women can grow in the values of faithfulness, hard work, punctuality, and doing their best with excellence.
We recently interviewed three of our residents—Rupali, Indra and Fareen*-- to hear their perspective on a one-year sewing & tailoring apprenticeship in which they are enrolled...
Tell us about your tailoring apprenticeship.
Fareen: We are being trained at a small manufacturing unit that makes clothes and speciality items for export.
Indra: We work Monday to Friday afternoons and receive a monthly stipend.
Rupali: We travel together by bus each day to and from the tailoring centre.
Fareen: The woman who trains us finished this same apprenticeship herself a few years ago!
What do you think of the tailoring training?
Rupali: It’s good! I never really liked sewing before, but I’m enjoying learning lot of new things there. At the moment, we’re learning how to make backpacks; before that, the trainers taught us how to make kurta/pyjama suits and cosmetic bags. We have also been learning about different fabrics and how to use them.
Indra: I’m thankful for it. It’s difficult, but it’s a new experience for me.
Fareen: I like it. I have had some training in sewing before, but I’m learning new things here. I find making bags quite hard, especially putting in the zipper, so it’s good to be learning these things. I really enjoy sewing and want to be a tailor in the future.
Apart from sewing, what else are you learning?
Fareen: We’re travelling alone, so I’m learning to take responsibility for myself now.
Rupali: Yes, we’ve had to learn to be careful on the roads as there is a lot of traffic these days!
Indra: Travelling on our own is teaching me how to be independent as well as to look out for others and to do things together.
Rupali: I have also been learning about money and how to use it, how to save, how to budget and decide what’s important to buy so that I don’t waste my money on other things.
Indra: I feel very privileged to get the money. Someone is teaching us and yet we are still being paid! It’s such a good opportunity. I’m learning how to save money. I’m also now seeing the value of things: I realise that before, I never used to take the cost of things seriously.
Fareen: I’m also learning how to save my money as well as how to buy things.
Rupali: I am learning to do the best I can in my work and to be careful with the items we are working on. The motto in the training centre is, “Always be neat and clean”!
Indra: It’s teaching me to work calmly and to focus on what I’m doing. I can feel my level of concentration is increasing.
Fareen: I have been learning to work hard, to do well and to take care in my work.
Indra: I’ve also been learning to keep going and not give up no matter how hard I find the work. If I keep trying, then I will be able to do it, and the result will be mine—I will be able to see what I have achieved.
We continually hunt for apprenticeships and on-the-job training opportunities in a variety of sectors. In case you know of a good option, please share it with us, as it could help other women like Rupali, Indra or Fareen in the future! (Write us at contact@newgenerationtrust.org)
To donate to NGT to support Atulya Home and our other efforts to empower the marginalised, please click here.
*Names changed to protect identity
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