CARE T in Action
Complaint with CARE T’s thematic area of work, the necessities of the target group and the practicability of the objectives of are considered.
Accordingly, CARE T’s action plan is drawn and put into effect in order to bring about the expected outcomes.
Life Skill Education
Adolescent girls, young women and men from vulnerable communities are trained in the ten core life skills of the World Health Organization by experienced trainers through play way methodology.
Life Skill Education (LSE) enhances their basic knowledge in decision making, problem solving, creative thinking, critical thinking, effective communication, interpersonal relationship, self-perception, empathy, coping with stress and managing emotions.
Training in Life Skill Education Boosts up their confidence and enables them to lead a successful personal as well as professional life.
Coimbatore, Tirupur, the Nilgiris, Erode and Dindigul have been the geographical area covered so far. It has been extended and going on in Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Virudhunagar and Kanyakumari districts of Tamil Nadu as well.
So far, Life Skill Education has been imparted totally to 7,895 individuals.
“Life Skill Education training transformed my life and it is useful for me to take decisions on my own and it relieved me from stress and my communication levels are improved.”
–beneficiary of Life Skill Education
Gender Education
Gender Education aims at creating gender awareness among girls, women and men workers in relevant to their working environment.
Gender stereotype, gender discrimination and abuse are highlighted. Safety of women employees against gender-based abuse and gender equity at workplace are emphasized.
The women workers are enlightened on the statutory benefits of workers, employment standards and prevention of occupational health hazards.
Through Gender Education, the beneficiaries are sensitized on ensuring their safety at workplace and to get access to their welfare benefits.
Gender education has been provided to 4,043 young women through 166 training workshops.
“Gender education has opened up my mind and gave moral strength to work safely.”
– a young woman worker after factory level training
Reduction of Child Labour and Child Marriage
Sensitization intertwined with research based action against child labour has been set in motion by CARE T since 2002.
2,993 girl child laborers have been rescued and rehabilitated. 4 types of education centers based on the learning needs and levels of children are established by CARE T. The children are facilitated to improve their learning before they get enrolled in schools for formal education.
Teenage girls and their adolescent siblings are vulnerable to the evil practice of child marriage. They have been sensitized against it and further, they are encouraged to participate in the programme.
Educational Support to Children
CARE T has been providing educational support to 52,428 children of marginalized communities through various centers over the years.
Children Transit Education Center has been functioning exclusively for the rescued child labourers. The objective is to help these children upgrade their present knowledge to the required educational level so that they get admission in their age-relevant classes.
Bridge courses are being conducted by trained teachers to make them eligible to be included in regular stream of school education.
Children Activity Centers and Village Children Development Centers facilitate joyful learning and encourage children to
participate in social events at their location on national and International days relevant to children and youth.
The objective is to prevent early school leaving of children by inspiring them to be involved as a group in traditional plays,
indoor games and sports activities so that their inner talents are exhibited.
By strengthening their spirits, children are motivated to continue their schooling and learn to value the importance of education.
Through School Children’s Education Support Programmes, teachers are assigned through Parent-Teacher Association to help slow learners improve their learning level. Individual attention is given to the slow learners through after school tuition classes to enhance their learning.
Career Guidance
Career guidance is designed to help adolescents, young women and men workers and the marginalized communities make and implement sound educational and career choices.
It is provided in order to identify their learning needs and career preferences based on their strengths and character.
Career guidance is followed by resolving their inadequacies through educational support, thus, leading them to enjoy better social, financial and emotional well-being. Career guidance has a solid impact on the poverty reduction aspect of the vulnerable families. No of beneficiaries of career guidance 20,186
Counselling
A systematized counselling by CARE T aims at relieving stressed and traumatized youth from their mental depression through psychosocial care.
Counselling is conducted by staff and volunteers who are periodically trained from various psycho social care institutions including National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS). Individual, group and family counselling are conducted based on their needs.
Restoring the mental health of the distressed by helping them come through despair, avert suicidal tendencies and transform them from a stressed individual to a self-confident one with an optimistic outlook are the positive outcomes of counselling.
So far, CARE T’s counselling programmes have brought back smiles in 25,934 traumatized individuals.
Action Groups for the Welfare of the Vulnerable People
Young women beneficiaries from vulnerable communities are activated strengthened to form action groups.
Women empowerment being the major objective, the action groups get oriented in poverty alleviation schemes and linking poor families with the women welfare schemes are initiated.
After the process, action groups act as local independent groups and collectively work for women welfare in their habitat as well.
174 action groups located in several villages with a membership of 2,122 members are locally active at present.
Rehabilitation and Rebuilding of Tsunami Victims
In the aftermath of Tsunami, CARE T had leaped into action immediately and assisted 7,000 victims from 540 families get medical treatment with the help of 32 women health workers in Kanyakumari district.
Sensitization on Poverty Alleviation Schemes
As an effort to rebuild the lives of fisher families, sensitization on poverty alleviation schemes had been conducted.
Linking Poor Families with Government Welfare Schemes
CARE T assisted poor fisher families to benefit from government schemes. In order to link the eligible women with the schemes, 8 workshops were organized and 337 women were trained to sensitize the community further. The eligible fisher women were facilitated to get government support. 2,278 Government schemes were covered for women from fisher families.
Enhancement of Livelihood
CARE T had supported the deprived fisher women to restore and enhance their livelihood of selling fish. Meetings with them helped in identifying their financial need to continue their source of income.
CARE T had financially assisted 392 fisher women with micro grants, and 2,967 with revolving micro grants.
Besides, CARE T had tried to sort out the issues they face in selling fish. Preserving fish from getting stale was a nagging problem.
In this regard, CARE T had its hand to fisher women by distributing ice boxes to store fish and aluminium vessels to carry fish so as to enable them to sustain their livelihood of fish vending.
Covering 15 fishing villages, 666 ice boxes and aluminium vessels were distributed.
Rehabilitation and Rebuilding of the Vulnerable during Covid-19 Pandemic
With the aim of realizing the goal of Zero Hunger, CARE T had extended its helping hand to the disadvantaged people in its target area due to COVID-19. Besides, CARE T had even reached the unreachable in remote hilly areas.
As an immediate relief work, dry food materials for cooking had been supplied to 8,086 families. Vegetables were procured from the farmers directly from the farm and distributed to 1,500 affected families, thus, helping the farmers also in generating their income during lockdown. Nutritious snacks were prepared and provided to 3,171 children.
Face masks stitched using reusable fabric by the young women of CARE T’s tailoring unit were distributed to 35,000 people. Sanitary napkins were issued to 7,000 young women from the disadvantaged families without any source of income during the lockdown.
Online educational activities were organized through teacher volunteers to 984 children in remote villages in order to enrich their learning process.
Home quarantine kits were delivered to 100 families. 750 sets of personal protection gears were supplied to frontline health workers and doctors in Primary Health Centres in order to safeguard them from being infected by the virus. 7 Home Oxygen Makers (machines) were made available to treat patients in emergency cases.
CARE T started the rebuilding of the affected communities by guiding them to take up contextual employment opportunities like mask making, sanitizer preparation, etc.
Raw vegetables were procured directly from micro as well as small scale farmers in order to help them gain a steady income during the lockdown.
Professional skill development for better employability and decent work
CARE T has been promoting empowerment of young women from marginalized communities through formal training in professional skills as per their needs and interests as well as local feasibility for immediate employment opportunities.
Industrial Tailoring
Aari Threadwork for designer clothing
Medical Technician Course
Home-based chocolate making
Trainees of Computer Education and Nursing Course
Defying gender stereotype, women are trained in driving vehicles and working as taxi and auto rickshaw drivers
The programme has been implemented in Coimbatore, Tirupur, the Nilgris and Dindigul Districts. Vocational Skill Development and Employment in Decent Work is a highly successful poverty alleviation intervention of CARE T.
So far, 8,307 individuals have been benefited in skill development.
Process-oriented Capacity Building for Empowerment
The programme focuses on empowering the target group and building social leadership.
Young women are trained in social leadership qualities in a sustained manner.
Process-oriented capacity building are conducted on income generation, savings, banking, insurance, nutrition, health, kitchen garden for organic vegetables, safe fishing, safe migration, coping with domestic violence, dowry, legal rights of women, and women empowerment for 10,143 women irrespective of age.
Human Resource Development Education
Human Resource Development Education is provided for young workers from the poor and the marginalized communities with the objectives of enabling individual work efficiency and productivity at workplace.
Human Resource Development Education fosters the beneficiaries’ competences in empathy, self-awareness, motivation, time and stress management, communication skills, creativity, logical thinking, work ethics, and team work and leadership qualities.
So far, 1,466 young women workers have been benefited through 37 training workshops.
Labour Education
Labour Education is provided for workers as well as for supervisors and managers of textile and garment industries with the objective of imparting knowledge on key labour laws and entitlements such as Employees Provident Fund, Employees State Insurance, etc.
The programme enables them to be aware of their rights and duties.
Participation of workers and management staff members
Textile workers, supervisors and management employees are trained in labour, gender and human resource development education with the aim of establishing the best textile model. The objectives of the trainings are to create a safe and healthy working environment for employees while improving the productivity of the industry.
Mobilizing textile, yarn and garment manufacturers towards the Best Textile Model is an effort to create a win-win situation in global textile supply chain in Tamil Nadu.
The Best Textile Model is implemented in 63 textile mills and garment export factories and 7,580 workers have received trainings under this programme.
Restoration of Open Wells and Natural Ponds
Mobilizing textile Fisher families from coastal villages of Tamil Nadu had been deprived of portable water and clean water for bathing and other domestic purpose aftermath of the cyclones.
Clean water and sanitation were made easily accessible to vulnerable people by restoring open wells and desilting natural ponds.
Fisher women utilizing potable water from restored wells
Natural pond before and after desilted by CARE T
17 open wells were restored and 6681 families have been using these wells, while 6 natural ponds were desilted and clean water has become accessible to 3404 families.
Rainwater Harvesting Utilization Systems in Schools
Mobilizing natural resources, Rainwater Harvesting Utilization Systems (RHUS) have been installed in schools and children are motivated to maintain gardens at schools to nurture environment.
Rainwater Harvesting Utilization Systems (RHUS) and school gardens are developed in 15 places and 4,189 Children are using RHUS’s and school gardens.
PAUL-Portable Aqua Unit for Lifesaving
Clean portable drinking water was provided through PAUL in the coastal villages of Tamil Nadu.
PAUL preliminary demonstration
Water users of PAUL
94 Families and 194 children have been benefited from Portable Aqua Unit for Lifesaving (PAUL). Water consumption by the families has been 2,451,188 Litres in 6 years.
Environment Atlas of River Basins
With the objective of planning and implementing actions for the protection of water resources and conservation of environment in the river basins of Tamil Nadu, an Environment Atlas was designed by CARE T.
Data collected in river sub basins and marked in the atlas include location, streams, canals, ponds, lakes and rivers. Hydrological details, water quality analysis of surface and ground water resources and its location within sub basins are marked in the atlas of river basins. Source and non-source pollutants, solid waste dumping yards and environment related items are indicated in the atlas as well.
Climate Resilient Agriculture
Adaptation of Climate Resilient Agriculture is a mitigation effort to overcome the climate change stress and to promote efficient water and nutrient management for effective productivity and resource utilisation.
Farmers are trained in climate resilient agriculture and sensitized in protecting water resources from pollution for sustainable water management in low water intensive but high output agriculture. 161 farmers have been trained in practising climate resilient agriculture.
11 training programmes on ground water protection and reuse of coir products as organic manure for coconut fibre producers have been conducted by CARE T.
313 coconut fibre producers have been trained through these programmes.
Multi crop plantation in coconut grooves as climate resilient agriculture is encouraged. Produce of multi-crop plantation supports farmers during climatic disturbances.
Training on Organic Farming and Sustainable Agricultural Practices
Aiming at realizing the goal of climate mitigation through toxic free, soil friendly and low water intensive agriculture, farmers are sensitized and trained in organic farming and sustainable agricultural practices.
Recycling organic wastes as manures and natural pest control measures are demonstrated in the training.
525 beneficiaries were assisted in individual house tree planting. 1400 trees were planted using the techniques in the training. Apart from this, 409 coconut trees were planted.
335 families were trained in medicinal plant cultivation, while 205 families were trained in the preparation of medicines using herbs.
Preparation of organic manure and on-field demonstration of innovative seedling technique in model organic farm of CARE T
Revival of Coastal Ecology
Sand Dune development for prevention of sea water intrusion and coastal water conservation
The loss of human life as well as the destruction of coastal ecology due to Tsunami disaster was the highest in fisher villages without sand dunes. Taking into account of this observation, man-made sand dune has been created to mitigate climate change impact. Sand dune serves as a natural resilient and eco-friendly barrier to the destructive forces of winds and waves.
Participatory discussions were organized with the traditional elderly fisher folk who have indigenous knowledge in understanding the sea wave movements and the pattern of wind flow in various seasons. It has helped in gaining knowledge on the specific locations of accumulation of sands in the beach towards the development of sand dunes.
Water samples have been collected from 12 wells located in and around the sand dune and tested before and after to scientifically correlate between the quality and quantity of the water.
In order to create the sand dune, 300 trees and other sand dune flora species have been planted.
Poovarasu (Thespesia populnea) and Punnai (Calophyllum innophyllum) are the major species planted to create the sand dune that is 90 meters long and 8 meters wide with the height of 2 meters.
Plants viz. Ipomoeas biloba, Agave cantala and Spinifex littorues are planted to cover the slopes and top area of the sand dune.
This sand dune has become a model to be emulated by the other coastal villages for coastal water conservation.
Coastal Ecological Remediation
Traditional coastal tree plant species are nurtured, distributed and planted along the coast as an effort to promote ecological remediation.
Protection of Coastal Ecology
School children are enlightened on the significance of the protection of coastal ecology and conservation of the oceans as well.
They are made to realize the need for the reduction of dumping plastic wastes on the sea shore.
CARE T has inspired the school children to pledge for the revival of coastal ecology.
School children are motivated to get involved in removing plastic wastes on the sea shore as a part of their eco club activities.
Solid Waste Management Plants in Coastal Villages
Covering 6 coastal villages, 20 waste recycling units are installed and 4,206 families benefit from the units. Solid wastes are disposed without polluting the coastal environment.
Environment Education
CARE-T has implemented environment education for 7,391 school children studying in 90 Government and aided middle schools since June 2011 onwards.
A book on Environment Education authored by S. M. Prithiviraj comprises 23 lessons that cover an introduction to ecology, water and land resources and how to protect them, negative impacts of global warming, positive impacts of organic farming, bio-diversity of oceans, and the need to protect coastal eco system.
Children with Environment Education book
As a part of Environment Education, eco club activities are initiated. Eco clubs have been inaugurated in 36 schools with a total number of 5,751 student members and they have been functioning efficiently.
School children pledge to protect Coastal Ecology
Ecological field experiment
Exposure visit to organic farm
The significance of healthy food habits, using protected potable water, clean sanitation and planting trees for pollution-free environment are highlighted through eco club activities. Planting more trees and maintaining herbal as well as organic gardens in schools are inspired and implemented by CARE T to sensitize the future generation on native health care.
Herbal garden for sensitization on native health care
Inauguration of herbal garden in schools
Herbs labelled with their benefits
Herbal gardens in 15 schools with 1,500 saplings have been initiated and maintained effectively so far.
Modern Organic School Garden
In 15 schools, organic gardens are introduced and 4,189 plants have been planted by student members of eco clubs.
As a part of their eco club activities, the students are taught to maintain the gardens effectively.
Vegetables from organic school gardens are being utilized for noon meal preparation in schools.
Watershed Moments of CARE T
Tamil Nadu Fishermen Welfare Board
It was a watershed moment of CARE T when the Tamil Nadu Fishermen Welfare Board (TNFWB) was proposed and accomplished by CARE T’s network for the marginalized people in January 2007.
The board was implemented by Fisheries Ministry of Tamil Nadu. CARE T has been engaged in generation of awareness on the utility of fisher welfare board among the fisher community.
The membership of the Fisherman Welfare Board has exceeded over 440,000 in 2024. TNFWB has provided educational and work related welfare measures like sponsoring full educational fee for 5% of students admitted under fisherman quota, etc. Over 52,000 members of the fisher welfare board have been benefited since its inception.
BEST TEXTILE MODEL
CARE T has been promoting the BEST TEXTILE MODEL which has been widely appreciated by the civil society and industries.
It is the first of its kind in Tamil Nadu since it elevates productivity that favours the employers while supporting for the welfare of the employees.
Thus, building a harmonious ambience in the workplace leading to a win-win situation for all.
PINK BOX
CARE T has initiated the installation of PINK BOXES in factories as a part of Grievance-Redress Mechanism in connection with gender-based abuse against women at workplace. The affected women may report to the Internal Committee immediately in case of any abuse against them through Pink Boxes so that quick action would be effectuated by the concerned authorities.
For more information on the activities, recent annual reports and financial reports, kindly contact with your name and postal address details by email: caretn@rediffmail.com