Women jail inmates learn to make paper bags in Sambalpur

SAMBALPUR: The inmates of Sambalpur Women’s Jail were trained to make paper bags or thonga as part of the Odisha Livelihood Mission (OLM) recently
Pushpashree Nayak, the district program manager of OLM (Sambalpur), said, “The women’s jail here has a tailoring unit with eight machines, but only five inmates were engaged in sewing activities. So we decided to impart them the skills that require minimum effort and can help supplement their income.To start with, we taught them to make paper bags.” She added that paper bags are being used widely as the use of plastic is banned in the city.
“With the help of one of our self-help group members, we taught the inmates how to make different types and sizes of paper bags. They have now started doing it on their own. We have assured them of sourcing waste paper and newspaper from different offices so that they can continue with the manufacturing. We have also asked a few business establishments to buy the paper bags from the jail and share the information with others so that they can sell their produce,” she said.
Nayak further said many inmates of the Nari Bandi Niketan come from very poor families. The families of some of the inmates are not even interested in taking them back home owing to social stigma. “Under such circumstances, this skill will help them earn their livelihood after they are released from jail. We are also planning to teach them to grow mushrooms.” Established in 1994 and spread over one acre of land in the foothills of the Circuit House Hill, the Nari Bandi Niketan here is the only jail for women in the state. As of Wednesday, there are 23 inmates in this jail against its capacity of 55.