Just like in any backwater of Pakistan, women of Thar are mostly restricted to household chores, however, a few Thari women have found a way through driving dumpers to gain economic independence, a remarkable achievement for rural women.
The Thar Desert, a dry region that stretches over 200,000 square kilometers, borders the Indian state of Rajasthan on the eastern side of Sindh province. Thar is the only area of Pakistan where majority of the population is Hindu.
The idea of female dumper drivers and its rapid adoption is a startling phenomenon. In the desert region of Thar, women dumper drivers—some of them are from the Hindu community—have not only cracked the glass ceiling but also achieved economic independence—something unheard of there.
“There was poverty, a long spell of unemployment and hunger encircling our lives,” said dumper driver Meena Kumari during an interview with Express Tribune. “I made the decision to work as a dumper driver in a mining company, a job that was historically viewed as being ‘male only’, and despite strong resistance and my husband’s threats to leave me, I approached the business and was hired, which completely changed the lives of my entire family as well as mine.”
Every day, Meena Kumari, Rupa, and other female drivers take the coal out of the stockyard and drive it in their enormous dump trucks to the power plant. Now, they have completed six to eight rounds of coal transportation; but, on busy days, that number may increase to twelve or fourteen.
In the Thar Coal Block II project, SECMC’s women empowerment Women Dump-Truck Driving (WDTD) Program trains selected women for comprehensive driving training, during which they are paid a stipend of Rs 15,000 each month. At the completion of training, they are employed and earn, from Rs 25,000 to Rs 40,000.
Seventy women have received training from SECMC to yet, and 25 of them are actively working at the site to move coal from the stockyard to the power plant.
Chief Executive Officer of SECMC Amir Iqbal, while describing the project to Express Tribune, said that since the region ranks low on the Human Development Index, we wanted to bring maximum employment opportunities here, with keen focus towards bringing females into active workforce as well, something that was completely unheard of in this region.
“Our pioneering Dump Truck Drivers Training Program for Women is a creative way to economically empower the women of Thar and sow the seeds for bridging the gender gap as much as possible in this area. With incremental steps we hope to continue championing women in workforce in Thar and beyond,” he said.
It should be noted that women’s participation in the work force in Thar is a mere eleven percent in comparison to that of men with eighty-three percent.
Another woman dumper driver Nusrat of Mitthi termed the job as life changing experience for her and her family.
“I am getting around US$ 137 (PKR 30,000) salary per month, medical facilities, and other benefits,” she said, “With our savings, we bought a plot worth US$ 1,385(PKR 300,000), a motor bike and a cow to fulfill our dairy needs, and now I am aiming to buy a car,” she added.
In addition to providing their families with financial security, Thari women dumper drivers serve as role models for teenage girls in the area who lack education and training. The underprivileged Thari women are encouraged by the rising level of societal acceptance since it will provide them more economic independence and improve their lives.
