SST helps improve the lives of tribals in Jawadhu Hills

Srinivasan Services Trust (SST), a social arm of the TVS Group, has played a key role in making life better for the residents of Elanthampattu, a tiny tribal hamlet on Jawadhu Hills in Tiruvannamalai.

The hamlet has 280 residents. Men work as farmers and honey collectors. Women take care of household chores and assist men in farming. Millets, sugarcane and paddy are cultivated.

The trust brought a centrally-sponsored housing scheme to households here.

Modern techniques were introduced to farmers for converting banana waste into handicraft products like placemats, baskets, bags and fruit bowls. The Trust also helped them in marketing their finished products. The existing government primary school was refurbished with funds from the Trust and work done by the residents.   The tribal hamlet is one among the many villages in Jawadhu Hills that achieved a sustainable livelihood with the efforts of SST since its formation in 1996 in Padavedu, a small village on the foothills. A dedicated team from the Trust has been working with the tribals for many years. During the pandemic, the Trust organised regular medical camps in 12 tribal villages on Jawadhu Hills, covering 1,189 beneficiaries. The Trust also runs a healthcare centre in Padavedu, where the sick from tribal hamlets are treated regularly. “Our residents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The credit goes to SST’s efforts in creating awareness about the infection,” says 94-year-old A. Raman, a tribal.