Citi Journalist

Credits - yummiec00kies
In India, where strong patriarchal traditions exist, one woman tries to make a change. It is known that Indian women are usually home makers and their husbands are the ones who work for a living. However, Sharmila, a 37 year old local, begs to differ. Sharmila from Kerala, the land of “keras” or coconuts, proves herself by plucking nuts from coconut trees. Indeed, it is an odd job for a woman to take.

Sharmila enjoys climbing up the steep coconut trees of varying heights, as she quickly picks nuts from the trees. She has given relief to the people of Kerala who are now experiencing acute shortage of trained workers. A big percentage of Kerala’s youth are avoiding getting traditional jobs. Thus, Kerala faces labor shortage in a number of fields. Sharmila not only does this to help the district of Kerala, but she also wants to prove that women can do what men can.

It is in the neighboring district of Kasaragod where Sharmila resides. She lives in the humble area of Pallikkara Panchayat. Sharmila not only works to pluck nuts from coconut trees, but is also serving the Indian government on a part-time job. She makes use of her extra time to pluck nuts. Using a manually operated gadget, she can pluck nuts from about ten to fifteen coconut trees each day. So how much does she get paid for doing a high-risk job? She charges 10 India Rupees for each tree. That’s about a quarter (.25 cents) in US Dollars! Therefore, if she completes ten coconut trees per day, she’ll earn about $2.50 for that day. Imagine that. However, India has a lower cost of living as compared to most countries. Thus, the 10 India Rupees per tree would be a big help to meet the ever-increasing expenses we encounter.

Sharmila’s neighbors and the people nearby seem to be star-stricken whenever they see Sharmila climbing coconut trees and plucking the nuts. Some of them were in awe, while some are doubtful. What do you think? Should women like Sharmila stay out of such high-risk jobs? Or should she continue what she’s doing? Sharmila thinks the latter. She said in an interview that she has become a much sought after person as she quickly responds to urgent calls to pluck coconuts. “My decision to take up this uncommon job for a woman came after my husband’s desperate plea for some casual workers to pluck coconuts from the trees around our newly purchased home went unheard”. she said.

Ladies, would you take a job similar to that of Sharmila’s? As for the men, would you allow your wives to accept such a task?

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