Joginis add shine to Diwali with handmade lamps

NARAYANPET: Joginis of Narayanpet district are now actively employed, making clay lamps thanks to the encouragement of District Collector Dasari Harichandana. The Joginis, who have been ignored  by society for a long time, are now on the path of self empowerment. They have set up several micro industries and are now marketing their products through online and offline marketing modes. 

Collector Harichandana has been working hard to do away with the deep-rooted Jogini system in the district. As per official records, a total of 2,025 Joginis live in Narayanpet district. Not only do these women face discrimination, their children too are the target of social ridicule. 

Harichandana took the help of an NGO, Sankalp, to rehabilitate the women. As a form of employment, these socially ostracised women are now making beautiful Diwali lamps and painting them. They have bagged several orders thus far. The products made by Joginis have found great demand in Shilparamam, Hyderabad, apart from online buyers. The entrepreneurs are being provided with loans ranging from `50,000 to `50 lakh to set up their own businesses. They are also making food items, uniforms, dresses, jute bags, washing powder and soaps.  Some of the Joginis are being trained in spoken English and undergoing beautician courses. 

District Coordinator of Sankalp, Gundre Rosy, tells Express that the NGO is glad to have been given this opportunity to serve Jogini women and their children. “We have provided different kinds of vocational training to the women. 

The Collector said that she took up the task of rehabilitating the women as soon as she took over the charge of the district, with the help of Sankalp. “The achievements of these women is indeed heart-warming,” she says.