THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Every year, this time of the month is joyful for Suresh Kumar who has been bedridden for the past 13 years. For this paraplegic, April is the most productive month when he is given orders to make hundreds of umbrellas that are sold quickly just before the monsoon begins.This year, however, he has lost all hopes as he hasn’t received a single order owing to the lockdown. Like Suresh, a majority of the differently-abled in the district eke out a living by selling umbrellas. However, with no orders and unavailability of required materials, they are worried about their future.
Suresh was injured and later confined to his bed after he fell from a mango tree a few years ago. Due to the financial crisis and difficulty in travelling, he considered making handmade umbrellas which became an instant hit among his customers. “My clients include schools and other small scale organisations who give bulk orders during the month of April and by May, I dispatch the umbrellas. With the lockdown, my business which is my only source of livelihood, has been largely hit,” he says.
Suresh used to meet his target of making 10 umbrellas each day which was sold at a cost of Rs 300 per piece. “ Although I had bought some materials before the lockdown, I haven’t received any orders till now,” says Suresh, who is also a tutor at the rehabilitation programmes for differently-abled persons conducted by Pallium India, a charitable trust based in West Fort.
Aji Kumar, a resident of Kattakada, makes a living by making umbrellas and other handicrafts along with his wife, Remya. Aji was confined to a wheelchair after a near-fatal accident. “I have been making umbrellas for the past eight years and it is my only source of livelihood. Last year, I received bulk orders by the mid of March from other states. But this time, I have hardly received any orders. The materials which had been bought in bulk are no longer required. I’m trying to sell them now, “ says Aji.
Last year, Aji had received an order from a US-based NRI for 50 umbrellas through Pallium India. Beach umbrellas used by street vendors and wayside vegetable vendors are usually sold like hotcakes this season. “Last year, I was able to sell more than 300 beach umbrellas by mid-March itself. But due to the lockdown, the sales of these umbrellas have been badly hit,” he says. Besides umbrellas, Aji also makes school bags and paper pens.
Joy G and nearly 50 other differently-abled persons from Kerala have been earning a living through a Facebook group ‘Umbrella by Differently-Abled Kerala’ which has been helping them market and sell their products. However, Joy says: “ Our livelihood has been affected with absolutely no orders. We are in debt as we haven’t been able to pay for the materials bought for making umbrellas.”