VILLUPURAM: As the lockdown has been eased over the past year, people from the rural areas have begun migrating to nearby States in search of labour due to poor financial conditions caused by the loss of employment during the pandemic. To combat this, officials say, they have been improving rural skill sets with training in arts and crafts.
R Ramesh (45) from Deviagaram in Thirukovilur was a fruit vendor in Bengaluru for five years, until 2020. After returning to the village, his family of five had been surviving by selling jack fruits and bananas on a cart at the Thirukovilur Bus Stand.
"I used to make Rs 70,000 every six months when I worked in Bengaluru. My income increased when my wife accompanied me. But it has been difficult to make even Rs 40,000 a year for the past two years. My family and two others from the village decided to go back to Karnataka," said Ramesh.
Similarly, families from the Kandamangalam block have chosen to migrate to Andhra Pradesh to continue their previous work, according to a migrant welfare organisation in Villupuram. The core reason for migration, according to U Karkee, a project officer at the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation is the lack of skill training among the rural communities.
The existing skill training model is not compatible with the market, he said adding that the rural communities must be trained in skills that they can turn into a viable business using minimal investment. "The present model doesn't provide much space for them as the investment is high," Karkee stated.
However, officials at the Tamil Nadu Rural Transformation Project (TNRTP) say grassroots training has been going on for the past year. A senior TNRTP officer said the department was training the marginalised communities in pottery and embroidery.
"We usually find a local expert in a particular skill and they will be the resource person to train a batch of up to 30 people from the same locality. Once the training is over, the participants can start a business or job. We will then observe them for three months to record their process," said J Arun, a senior TNRTP official, Villupuram. He further added that the department will arrange for funds and subsidised loans for the beneficiaries to start a business.