“The Society of St. Ann has become an Angel of Charity…. Angels do not die.” – Fr. Wilhelm Meyer (Founder – SAL)
Rag-pickers are literally people who pick up rags and sell them as a source of livelihood. They are not recognised as labourers nor do they come under any organized sector. Shifting through the garbage, muck and waste, they expose themselves to a host of fatal diseases.
The Rag-pickers of Vijayawada and their lives caught the attention of SAL way back in 1998. Sr. Gnana Selvi who was responsible for the women and child immunisation program at a hospital that was set up by SAL, was curious about the living conditions of rag-pickers. She saw that the rag-picker families along with their children lived under bridges. During the monsoons, with heavy rainfall, the canals used to be flooded with dirty water culminating near these bridges and exposing these people to all sorts of maladies.
The rag-picker families living under the bridge would demarcate their surroundings with a makeshift fence which the Municipality would remove every now and then, forcing them to relocate their camps elsewhere temporarily. This concerned Sister tried to get help for them from the relevant authorities but to no avail. Finally, the SAL Vijayawada Province purchased some land in Simhadri Apparao Peta (S.A.Peta) and constructed houses for them.
Right now, in S.A.Peta ( a village in Agiripalli Mandal in Krishna District), 56 houses have been constructed. SAL provides 56 families free accommodation and education relief for their children. It was noted that most of the rag-pickers were alcoholics, so counselling sessions were provided for them. Thanks to the determination of Sr. Gnana Selvi and the Sisters of that centre, the children of the rag-pickers are no longer in this profession, having received education relief and opting for more financially viable professions.
These 56
families are being facilitated with various opportunities
to develop handicraft skills and financial support to set
up small scale business to earn their living. Time and again they are facilitated with stalls at exhibitions to expose their products to new market and buyers.
