Nagpur: Storming the male bastion of automotive technicians, Hemlata Kolhe (24) and her cousin Ratnakala (23) — natives of Maoist-sensitive Katezhari village in Dhanora taluka of north Gadchiroli — have landed jobs in a leading Pune-based four-wheeler parts manufacturing company.
Hemlata, Ratnakala and others were offered one-month training by an agency through the police department. They were taken to Ralegaon in Yavatmal for the training. After completion, the youngsters were absorbed in the automobile sector with an initial payment of Rs11,000-12,000. Around six women from different villages of Gadchiroli are now colleagues in the automobile company.
In Katezhari village, where life reels under the uncertainty of police-Maoist confrontations turning it into a combat zone, women seldom step out of the shadow of their families. There is an indirect pressure round the clock from both, police and Maoists for their support and association. Several women from the village have earlier picked up arms and joined the rebel movement.
Having studied till Standard XII in remote Gadchiroli ashramshalas, the Kolhe sisters were almost ready to surrender to their fate in the tribal district and join family members at farms outside the village, when life took a turn.
A call from the local police post near Katezari apprised them of the training-cum-placement scheme, transporting them from their remote village to progressive western Maharashtra.
“We can now earn and help our family back home,” said Hemlata, adding that she was enjoying her job as a technician in the four-wheeler gear manufacturing unit. “We are hoping that our lives will gradually change for the better,” she said.
Police superintendent (SP) Ankit Goyal said around 3,400 youngsters from Gadchiroli, including a substantial number of women, were helped to either hone their skills for self-employment or sent for training and get placed like the Kolhes. Goyal said, “Through police’s ‘Dadalora khidki’ programme, many youngsters have found their dreams. We have roped in many agencies for training and placing the youngsters free of cost at various companies.”
The SP added that women joining the automobile industry through their scheme was unprecedented. “We have helped several women get jobs in the hospitality and healthcare industry as nursing assistants. Some were trained in beautician courses too,” he said.
Ratnakala said she will encourage other women from her village to take up the training, adding, “I hope more women follow in our footsteps and transform their lives.”
