CII Communique November 2012

cover storyIf India has to get completebenefit of its large populationand big market, weakersections of society have to becarried along. And this has toextend beyond industry.Chandrajit Banerjee,Director General, CIIHer father, the sole breadwinner of the family, had apotato chips stall which failed. The family home had tobe sold to repay the debts, leading to truly desperatecircumstances.Srilekha was referred to MPS Chennai for a threemonth course in ITES. This training combined with herpositive “can do” attitude enabled the girl to qualify as aTrainee Programme Analyst. Today, she earns a salary of` 25,000 a month.Tata Communications LtdAshok B. Mahale of Nashik, a poor student, used to getinspired by reading success stories of entrepreneurs.He did not dream that he could one day becomean entrepreneur himself. By sheer chance, he cameacross a small advertisement in a local paper about theEntrepreneurship Development Programme sponsoredby Tata Communications Ltd. He joined the course inNashik.Conducting a business environment scanning exerciseas part of his course training, Ashok identified a gapfor sweet boxes in the city. He sought comprehensiveinformation about the entire manufacturing process forsweet boxes from Udyogwardhini, KVIC Nashik Centreand a few other sources. With an investment of just` 10,000, he started manufacturing sweet boxes. Hisbusiness has now stabilized, and he gets orders fromvarious outlets that manufacture sweets, snacks etc. Inseason, he has a turnover of up to ` 1,00,000/- per monthwhile, on an average, his monthly turnover is ` 25,000. Henow employs three people and has an income of around` 15,000 per month.Zensar TechnologiesZensar launched Udaan, a centre within the the Zensarcampus in Pune, to teach English to children fromlow income/Government schools. Such children aretypically at different levels of learning, making it difficultfor teachers to cater to individual needs in a classroomsetting. The Udaan programme uses digital applicationsto enable children to learn from modules that are bestsuited to them, which also allow them to progress attheir own pace, leading to better learning outcomes ofSpeaking, Listening, Reading, Writing and Grammar.A baseline assessment is carried out to measureprogress.Twelve-year old Jyoti who comes to the Centre afterschool is very pleased. “Didi not only helps me to learnEnglish, she also helps me to learn about computers sothat I can learn on my own. She teaches me throughgames and activities so I love coming here.”Currently, the Udaan programme services 41 studentsfrom classes 5 to 8, from the Chandannagar MunicipalSchool, in three shifts. These classes serve as an enablerfor disadvantaged children from the community to acquirelanguage and computer skills that will open up newavenues for education and employment in the future.Forbes Marshall Pvt Ltd.Forbes Marshall believes that encouraging SupplierDiversity is an effective way of drawing Dalits into thecountry’s economic mainstream, while also enlargingthe talent pool available to industry. It is committed tothe voluntary adoption of Affirmative Action as a meansto this end.The company has helped three entrepreneurs set upworkshops and develop businesses in areas such asfabrication, welding and machining, providing them withfinancial assistance and machinery, while also mentoringthem to become vendors to Forbes Marshall and functionindependently as entrepreneurs. To take an example:Vijay Suwase started work with Forbes Marshall in Puneas a helper on the shop floor 14 years ago. Impressedby his dedication and self-motivation, the companydecided to encourage him to set up his business inmachining components and fabrication of articles forassembly.Forbes Marshall gave Vijay the necessary training,mentored him and also provided him with a powerpress, hand press, cutting machine etc. With these,Vijay set up a small workshop, Asha Enterprises, inrented premises in new Sanghvi. Vijay has now hiredtwo employees and has an income of approximately` 60, 000 per month. He is also a proud tax payer!These success stories are representative of the waysby which appropriate interventions can positively impactnot just individual destinies but also have a catalyticimpact on the aspirations of SC/ST youth who have, inthe past, been excluded from the economic mainstream.Such initiatives accelerate the process of upliftmentof a historically disadvantaged section of society, andhave a transformational effect on the socio-economiclandscape, to make it more robustly representative andequitable, and inclusive.10 | November 2012 Communiqué