Before most of the readers search for what papad means, here is it's description. Papad is an Indian dish that is commonly eaten with meals, though playing a supporting role in the whole course of meal, this crunchy dish has it's role to play in the taste buds of the people. Papad originated from south India and is now consumed in most parts of India and is reaching out to food lovers outside India as well.
Lijjat Papad has a different story to tell to the world, being tagged under the company name of Shri Mahila Griha Udgog Lijjat Papad, this company serves as a source of inspiration to all those who wish to break the barriers, grow and make a better world for themselves and their families.
The company's aim is to empower women and they fulfill this by giving jobs to women in need of it. The company has mostly women working in their various departments. The company initially started off with a loan of Indian Rupee 80 in the year 1959, now has a turnover of billions and reaches every Indian household.
Courtesy: flickr.com
The company started by seven women often called as sisters, now gives employment to over 40,000 women. Those seven women wanted to capitalize on a skill that is present in every women in Indian household, that is cooking and use that skill to built an environment for them which would be full of respect and gratitude. And they succeeded in doing that, initially getting orders from just few nearby houses, now have orders from far off countries, how big an achievement is that.
The company now has 81 branches all over India. An initiative by seven women then, now is an epidemic. The company uses high quality ingredients for making papads, some of which also comes from Afghanistan. The papad that are made in all branches have an amazing uniformity in taste and size.
There are various women who work at Lijjat, but not exactly in the company premises but at their homes. Everyday, a bus goes around to pick up these women, the bus takes them to the Lijjat office, there they are given their dough for the day. The women would use this dough to make papads at their homes. Next day the same bus picks the women again, this time the women deposit the papads they have made and they get paid for it, also they get the dough for the day and the process repeats and has done wonders to the household of these women, it has supported them financially as well as given them a legitimate living of their own without depending on anyone else. These women are initially given equipments to make papad from the dough so that the size remains uniform throughout. Also, there are frequent checks that are carried by the Lijjat authority in the houses of these women to ensure that hygiene levels are maintained.
At Lijjat, women are also regularly given education in various disciplines to make them even more equipped with the knowledge of the world.
Amazing story, isn't it? So, everytime you feel that you cannot make a change in the society, remember this story. Keep inspiring and keep spreading love.
No comments:
Post a Comment