The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Dropouts find their feet

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 27, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Dropouts find their feet

M. Dinesh Varma

Several boys, given vocational training, are setting up small units

MOTIVATING THEM TO SUCCEED: School drop-outs learn from the success stories of vocational rehabilitation at a motivational programme organised on Sunday. — V. Ganesan

CHENNAI: Many school dropouts who quit learning because of poverty and poor parental support are now finding their feet, taking up a variety of jobs, ranging from tailoring to plumbing.

Dropouts, including boys and girls, are provided apprenticeship in their chosen vocation and on completing one year of training, taken by their employer.

Since 1981 when the Community Development Information and Action Centre (CODIAC) began its support services for dropouts, more than 1,300 boys and girls have got jobs as welders, two-wheeler mechanics and beauticians. These beneficiaries mostly hail from urban slums atChintadripet, Chetpet, Washermenpet, Pallavaram, Velachery and Anakaputhur.

The brighter ones who got five to six years experience in the job and sufficient savings have even set up their own shops and become employers themselves. Many have revived the education and completed standard X or enrolled for BA courses at the Open University.

Their families have also benefited from the earnings as they move from ramshackle hutments into rented houses with basic comforts.

Parental motivation low

"Low parental motivation is the main reason behind these children dropping out of school," said S. Stalin, Coordinator of CODIAC.

Many parents tend not to coax the child to go back to school, and because of their poverty, put small-time employment for the child above education.

"We think the most important aspect of our intervention is in avoiding dropouts from slipping into anti-social activity or crime," he said.

CODIAC takes up around 70 dropouts in classes three to ten and in the 15-20 age group every year. While boys can choose from electrical wiring, plumbing, two-wheeler and car maintenance, welding and lorry body building, the girls make their pick from tailoring, coil winding, leather goods designing and beautician apprenticeships.

The dropouts are identified by networking with Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board and NGOs implementing different missions in urban slums across the city. Economic backwardness is the most important criteria in candidate selection. The consent of parents is also secured before a candidate begins his hands-on training by arrangement with employers.

CODIAC provides a monthly stipend of Rs. 500 and the employer hands out a matching amount as wage. After a one-year training, the employer will formally recruit the candidate for a monthly salary of Rs. 1,000.

Get-together

The organisation on Sunday organised a get-together of past and present trainees and got the former to share their experiences. The programme was part of a motivational exercise for the new inductees and CODIAC's policy of maintaining close contact with its beneficiaries for a minimum period of five years. It has a social worker who is designated to monitor the progress of past and present trainees.

Counted among its many success stories are that of a 25-year-old boy who has set up his own welding shop at Pallavaram and another 20-year-old who operates his own two-wheeler service outlet at Nungambakkam.

However, compared to boys, girls are yet to show the entrepreneurial spark. So far, only one girl has started a beauty parlour at Kilpauk.

A small percentage of the candidates drop out of their jobs, mainly because of their dislike for heavy work. These candidates are routed to other jobs such as office assistants.

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