CHENNAI: ‘Ponaal pogattum poda, indha boomiyil nilaiyaai vaazhnthavar yaaradaa’ (Let it go...let it go....has anyone lived forever on this earth?), I hear yesteryear singer TM Soundararajan’s mellifluous and grief-filled voice greeting me from Mani’s mobile phone that’s sitting on the edge of a wooden board in his brightly lit, tiny makeshift workplace. “Inniki rombu busy day, akka, (Today is a hectic day)” he tells me, eyeing my bag piled with clothes, and pressing the hot coal iron on a striped shirt lying on the ironing board that’s waiting to get back to life. Mani is one of the many istriwallahs in India without whose services most households might come to a standstill. It is coal that fuels his life and business and yet, ironically, puts his life at stake.
When Cyril Joseph of Udayam Vyapaar had a similar experience, he wanted to do something about it. And thus was born the Istri Project, under which his team helps the ‘iron vyapaaries’ to create a sustainable and efficient lifestyle by introducing LPG iron boxes to them. “We are looking for a market transformation that would upgrade nano-entrepreneurs from coal waste ironing to a superior product called the LPG iron box which has existed in the market since 2009,” says Cyril.
The LPG iron box is a new technology that uses LPG gas as an alternate fuel for coal and the box is made up of brass metal. The iron box is connected to a gas cylinder through a hose pipe and the heat is equally distributed. The awareness and the benefits of the LPG iron box had not reached the community of iron vyapaaries, making this product not very popular in the market. Through the intervention of the Udhyam Vyapaar team, there is now a market demand which has benefitted many iron vyapaaries.
“In Chennai, in 5-6 months through subsidy, we have brought the demand for LPG iron boxes in the market and have reached 900 vyapaaries. We have termed this transformation as Coal2LPG. The vyapaaries who changed from Coal2LPG iron boxes receive the product from the retailer networks we have built,” says Cyril.
The istriwallah community has gradually accepted this new technology into their small businesses after experiencing its benefits through the retailer networks established by the team.
Blooming results
According to a survey done by the Udhayam Vyapaar team, coal being a costly fuel takes two hours to heat and the process is repeated. When the coal becomes ash it leads to health problems, mainly breathing difficulty. Since coal iron boxes do not have temperature controls nor guarantee coal protection, the vyapaaries iron clothes based on the temperature status and are also responsible for coal spilling on clothes. The LPG iron box would ease work for the labourers and thereby encourage a clean environment by avoiding coal wastage and dumping in the streets, he explains.
“The LPG iron boxes save time as they get heated in less than two minutes and the temperature is controlled through its built-in feature. Hence, the iron vyapaaries can iron more clothes per day earning more income and can further save money in buying LPG gas cylinders which cost less than coal. Access to LPG gas is much easier and cost-efficient. We want to move in an organic approach to keep a clean environment through this initiation,” says Cyril.
Through the Istri Project, the team wants to bring awareness about LPG iron boxes. “Through word of mouth and our established retail networks, the sustainability of the product is ensured,” he adds. To bring in a change from Coal2LPG iron boxes in the city, the team has set out a plan to enable all istriwallahs to have access to LPG iron boxes at an affordable price. “The retailer networks serve as the only way to reach out to the vyapaaries. So we insisted these retailers provide LPG iron boxes whenever the vyapaaries approach to buy coal iron boxes once in two years,” he says, pointing out that this resolves the problem of accessibility and awareness in the long term.
So far, the Istri project has succeeded in converting many iron vyapaaries from Coal2LPG and this initiation has in fact helped the vyapaaries to grow their business and ensure a healthy lifestyle. To bring more awareness about this product and have a high market demand, Udhayam Vyapaar wants to scale this product not only in Chennai but in other cities as well, says Cyril.