THARPARKAR: All is set to launch the Thari Female Dump Truck Driving Programme.
In this connection, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company has inked a contract with MCCT Associates to train selected Thari women drivers on professional grounds.
Mining company recently announced this initiative to induct women in Pakistan’s biggest 60-tonne dump truck at coal mining site Thar Coal Block II in district Tharparkar.
The contract was signed by SECMC’s chief executive officer Shamsuddin Ahmad Shaikh and MCCT’s senior consultant, Tanvir Gondal whereas SECMC’s Chief Operating Officer, Abul Fazl Rizvi and Director Human Resource Kashif Ahmed Soomro were also present.
As per contract, starting from September 1, 2017, selected candidates will undergo comprehensive training modules including languages module comprising English, Urdu and Chinese languages besides technical module and auto-basic module for one year followed by a regular job with all facilities company offers to its employees. During training phase, candidates will be paid Rs 15000 monthly stipend. The MCCT will deploy women trainers to conduct training at SECMC’s mine site.
Sheikh said one of the major components of SECMC’s coal mining project was to provide livelihood opportunities to local communities.
“When we started our project in Islamkot, we witnessed that Thari women were very strong and resilient and did a lot of arduous tasks. Since SECMC also strives to provide equal job opportunities to men and women, it was realised that a dedicated project to induct women in driving could well work, and response we received from Thari women showed that we have stepped ahead in right direction by employing women as dump truck drivers,” he said.
Rizvi, COO SECMC expressed that role of Thar Coal Mining project’s ‘fundamental principle to empower people of Thar’. “We want benefits of this game-changing project to be passed on to indigenous communities who are primary stakeholders of Thar Coal. And this project to train and induct women as dump truck drivers at coal mine is a SECMC’s commitment towards empowering women of the area, to help them stand shoulder-to-shoulder with men when it comes to socioeconomic affairs and decision making at community level,” he added.
MCCT’s Gondal held it as a ‘great initiative of SECMC to empower women and generate skilled female human resource in Tharparkar’.
He was of the view that they were delighted to be part of this initiative and will give best to make this programme successful by producing skilled women dump truck drivers competing at par with men in field.
Published in Daily Times, August 26th 2017.
