KOCHI: “Iwant a sit-out too for my house. And I’m positive that I will be calling Kudumbashree again for the same. They constructed my house last year. As a beneficiary, these women construction workers explained every part of their work in a scientific, but easy manner. The thing with employing them is that they’re very accurate and careful,” says Bindu K V, who is a Kudumbashree worker herself. Bindu’s house in Arayankavu, Ernakulam, was built by Kudumbashree Constructions, an all-women group, in 2018 at a cost of `4 lakh.
Bindu is one among the many beneficiaries who trusted Kudumbashree when the empowerment programme decided to pave a different path in 2013 by entering the construction industry, primarily a man’s world with just two construction units in the district. Six years down the lane, they’ve built 24 units in the district and 279 in the state.
Ernakulam has seen the construction of more than 30 houses under various schemes such as LIFE and PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana). And now, the group looks forward to receiving government accreditation, which will help them secure more contracts under the guidance of the respective panchayat.
“There’s a lot of encouragement and support in the field, unlike what one might assume. I’m trained in cement-mixing and I’ve been to several places for work. Primarily, you’re guaranteed income and you fall under the category of a skilled worker,” says Leela Antony, a Kudumbashree construction worker.
Beena Paul, who heads the first construction team in the district, says that it is indeed difficult to find similar training elsewhere. “Usually, one learns by observing the mason. Here, we have close to 53 days of training wherein women are taught how to measure, the mixing ratio and so on. After our team built a few houses for tribals in the district in 2014, the success of the same model was replicated in the other districts. Currently, we’re involved in the construction of six houses in Paravur under HUDCO,” she says.
However, it wasn’t easy for everyone. Vinaya Joy, a civil engineer, who heads another construction unit in Ernakulam, talks about instances where the workers were demotivated by the beneficiaries themselves. “We were told that the building walls would collapse if an all-women team carried out the construction. It took a while to motivate the team but they’re on track now. We constructed our first house in Kumabalangi last year. And the construction of six houses in Paravur is underway,” she says.
“The plan is to make them micro-contractors in future. Women were always helpers in the sector. Now, they’ve become skilled labourers and brough under MGNREGA, which guarantees fixed wages.. But to get more work, we need the support of the local-self government, which in turn requires a GO (government order). So currently, we’re pushing for the same,” says Nishanth G S, state assistant program manager. Upon receiving accreditation and more work, district all-women construction units could be combined into a state unit. “The plan is to empower women. Make them in-charge of bigger projects,” Nishanth adds.