Arakonnam Cement Works empowers over 2,000 marginalised women

Arakonnam Cement Works helps rural women to be economically independent through training in tailoring & embroidery

February 13, 2024, Chennai: Arakkonam Cement Works, the grinding unit of UltraTech Cement located in the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu, has empowered over 2,000 rural women hailing from low income families to secure sustainable livelihoods thereby enhancing their standard of living, as a part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative.

The Arakkonam Cement Works unit, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, adopted five villages – Kumpinipet, Melpakkam, Thandalam, Parithiputhur, and Chitteri, all situated near the unit. The effort aimed to uplift women from underprivileged sections of the society by providing them with a sustainable livelihood. Most of these women relied on unskilled labour, agriculture, and animal husbandry for their living, which offered inconsistent and seasonal income, resulting in financial dependence. Recognising the potential of tailoring and embroidery as a means for self-employment and work in local textile units, the unit's CSR team created a training centre. They began providing free tailoring and embroidery training to these women.

So far, 2,202 women from three villages of Chitteri, Thandalam and Parithiputhur have been trained. After successful completion of the training, the women were awarded certificates. Training for women from the other two villages is currently underway. About 800 of the trained women have been gainfully employed in local textile companies such as Ammayapper Textiles. The other trained women have also been able to augment their income by providing tailoring services locally.

UltraTech undertakes its social initiatives under the aegis of The Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiatives and Rural Development with Mrs. Rajashree Birla as its Chairperson. UltraTech’s CSR focus areas are education, healthcare, sustainable livelihoods, community infrastructure and social causes. UltraTech reaches out to more than 1.6 million beneficiaries in over 500 villages in 16 states across India through its CSR programmes.

About UltraTech Cement Limited

UltraTech Cement Limited, serving as the pinnacle cement company for the Aditya Birla Group, boasts an impressive revenue of USD 7.9 billion. As the third-largest cement producer globally, excluding China, UltraTech's total grey cement capacity reaches 140.99 MTPA. The company has pledged its allegiance to the GCCA Climate Ambition 2050 and has committed to the ambitious Net Zero Concrete Roadmap set forth by the GCCA.

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