Lovely Rawat led a regular life with her husband in Pandukeshwar village, Uttarakhand, being a house wife and handling her day-to-day household chores. Her husband, Brijesh ran a small general store, the income from which scarcely covered their basic necessities. With just a little more than Rs. 6000 a month, Lovely and her husband struggled to make ends meet but managed somehow.

However, when the flash floods devastated Uttarakhand, they altered the course of their lives forever. The little that Brijesh earned saw a drastic cut as the livelihoods of local residents (including tourism) were severely affected, leaving them with meager disposable incomes. The family had little savings to fall back on, to tide them through their toughest phase. The natural disaster had robbed them of their sustenance and it would take a lot of time and effort to start all over again.

This is when Project Shaksham, initiated by OneStage with the local implementing agency, Uttarakhand Youth and Rural Development Centre (UYRDC), came to their rescue. Lovely was approached and encouraged to enroll in the cutting and tailoring programmes as part of the livelihood and skill-building interventions of the project to help the people in the affected-areas of Uttarakhand to stand up on their feet again.

Twenty-five-year-old Lovely showed keen interest and worked sincerely to pick up the skillsets under this programme, without having to spend anything. After receiving training for two months, Lovely is now able to make garments with appreciable flair. Not only does she contribute to the family income now, but she is also a more confident and empowered woman, who is ready to be more than a house wife.

Today, her mastery in tailoring and refined skills are being utilised at the training centre to impart training to other participants from her village.

* Lovely from Pandukeshwar village received training from OneStage-supported programmes aided by our corporate and individual donors, following the devastating flash floods in Uttarakhand.