Kerala - Kollam   

Cashew workers in dire straits

KOLLAM: When it comes to making ends meet, it is tough time for cashew workers.

There are about 2.50 lakh cashew workers in Kollam district, 95 per cent of them women. Their purchasing power is the main means of livelihood for a big number of small-time retailers and vendors. They run the household on a daily basis and hence feel the pinch of the price rise the most.

The average daily wage of a cashew worker is Rs.105. For most cashew workers this is their only stable income.

Many of them do not get work on all days. When there is no work, savings from the previous days come in handy.

Most of the men are also daily wage earners. There are days when they too get no jobs. In many cases, a good portion of their wages do not reach home.

Baby, a cashew worker at the Polayathodu factory of the public sector Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, says that many like her have found running the household a difficult proposition for the past four months. ‘Even if the daily wage rises to Rs.150 it will be difficult…”

Though the same quantity of rice is purchased even now, the family has cut down on fish, vegetables and groceries.

Baby says she has gone thrifty even on coconuts. The family has started getting used to black tea since milk has become dear. “But I ensure that the children do not starve.”

Many cashew workers who live on rent in the vicinity of their factories have gone back to live with their parents and in-laws. Baby is one among them.

She says the family cannot afford to pay Rs.600 a month as rent. And now she has to traverse more distance to reach the factory. — I.P.

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