Madurai:
Three months ago, the future of 10 young Sri Lankan refugees looked bleak, but today, thanks to the Madurai district administration’s initiative, they are operating a BPO. N Satheeswaran, 21, a BSc graduate and team leader of the BPO which does online work outsourced by a Chennaibased firm, says it all began about three months ago when Madurai district collector U Sagayam visited their camp and interacted with them. “He asked us about our educational qualification and was impressed by the fact that most of us had completed our degrees. But he was taken aback when he found that all of us were unemployed,” he said.
Most women in the refugee camp make money by sewing while the older men do various jobs including finding employment in the construction industry. But these youngsters wanted to stand out and make use of their qualification. The youngsters, including Kathinthini, who completed his BCA two years ago and Sudhashini, aBCom graduate could not get government jobs while big private firms were not ready to take them in due to their refugee status.
“The collector said steps would be taken to provide us with employment and on December 26 last year, we were trained in the various BPO activities,” they said. Work began on January 2, 2012, in a government school premises in Bibikulam. But there are plans to shift to a corporation building allotted to them near the Annaiyur camp in a day or two. On Wednesday last week, the 10-member team, including four women, received their first salary of `6,000 each.
“We are happy for being given this opportunity as this was an impossible dream for most of us till a few months ago. The future of those like me, who do not want to go back to our country, lies here,” said Satheeswaran, who has to also take care of two younger brothers. Tahsildar Tamilselvi who is in charge of the refugee camps said efforts were being taken to provide work in the BPO for 30 more people. “Thirty women have also been trained in stitching and sewing machines would be distributed to them soon,” she said. There are also plans to start SHGs for these women, she said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Madurai / by Padmini Sivarajah / TNN / February 20th, 2012