Every time we pass a dumpster, we cover our face. We cannot stand the smell of the stinking garbage. But, right in that dumpster are people; men, women with little infants in one hand and a bag in the other, and little children with bags full of filth. They are our city’s ‘invisible environmentalists’. They are the ones who segregate our biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes. The other invisible lot of our city is of the four thousand sex workers trapped in the seventy-seven brothels, situated within one kilometer radius of G.B. Road. Both these sections of our society not only lead an impossibly hard life but, a marginalized one too; a life completely devoid of social acceptance and economic stability. In an effort to bring a positive change in the lives of these two sections of our society, the young entrepreneurs of Enactus Satyawati are working on two projects – Project Navjeevan and Project Vasundara. Enactus Satyawati consists of 35 Enacters who are committed to using the power of entrepreneurial action to transform lives and shape a better, more sustainable world. It started 18 months back and has achieved a number of national level grants, including being sponsored by KPMG, Walmart, Bluedart, HUL and Mahindra Rise. Project Navjeevan Through this project, Enactus Satyawati aims to improve the lives of the women at G.B. Road by providing them with the training to make notebooks. This will not only provide them with a new way to gain economic stability but, pave a path which will help them enter the mainstream world from their present marginalized state. Their prime objective is to uproot these women from prostitution by providing them vocational training and tailoring so, that they can live a dignified life. They intend to provide them with a place within the social structure without the stigma of prostitution. Project Vasundhara Under this project, Enactus Satyawati is working with the rag pickers of Roshnara Bagh. Rag pickers’ work involves the sorting out of the biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste. The biodegradable waste is vermi-composted to produce ‘manure’ which is the cheapest in the realm of fertilizers and is accredited by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute. The non-biodegradable waste is further sold off to middlemen who in return give them meager money for their labour. Children are the most exploited commodity in this trade of rag picking. They not only lose their childhood to hazardous workplaces but, are constantly prone to life-threatening diseases and toxic substances. Therefore, their project aspires to create a better and secure future for the rag pickers by opening new opportunities for them in various fields, while creating a model of ‘Green city, Zero Rubbish’, in the process. Image credits: Enactus Satyawati Facebook page. Nidhi Panchal [email protected]]]>
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