Young Indian
“I'd rather die my way than live yours.” Lauren Oliver, Delirium
Manoj
Keer is a young Indian adult, so inconspicuous that he can easily be missed out
in mob. This average single built man visits us once in 2-3 months on a
motorbike. His signature attire is a dark coloured terelyne trouser with
once-a-white shirt; either lines or checks. The worn out socks are hidden
beneath old and mended shoes. The bag-pack has a water-bottle and many sets of
rope bundles in it.
In the
first visit I was about to shoo him away considering him as one of the MBA- Marketing
students from a third-grade college mushroomed in the city . Many times I had
fallen prey to their educational needs.
‘I am not
here to sell anything. Rather, I am here to make you part of my entrepreneurship.’
His
sophisticated and clear communication made an instant impression. And so did
his pearly white teeth against the dusky complexion.
Manoj is
an arts graduate and resident of Raisen district. He collects, rather buys, old
newspapers, books, notebooks, magazines and make envelops out of them. He along
with 3 more friends have identified groups of women in slums. The raw material is supplied to them to make
envelopes for ½ and 1 kg quantity. The women are paid per 100 envelopes made.
‘I am
earning more than any job that a person with my education will get. Moreover, I
am independent. The biggest satisfaction is I am providing livelihood to many others.
As a citizen I am also able to work towards environment conservation.’ He is
professional-satisfaction and self-pride personified.
During
our chat he revealed that recently he got a huge order from a Pune based
company. Motivated by this, he is now thinking of making envelopes of other
sizes including paper shopping bags. He is also exploring diversifying into collection of e-waste .
In a recent
address on Start-up India , PM Modi had aptly said ‘Government should stop interfering and the Indian youth will do fabulously well.’
