Shanthi, now an entrepreneur after Sterlite intervention!

Ms Shanthi, a resident of Tuticorin and a member of SHG hails from a poor family. She is married and she is having 3 children. Her husband is working in a hotel goes for work daily but returns home only with a  meager money as he spends most of his income in purchase of alcohol. The family  was suffering and they could not even have one meal a day properly.  One day Ms.Shanthi came to know from her brother, that a lorry shed needs a hotel to be put up. Now the problem arises, for the capital to invest. She came to know about the SHG from her neighbors. She became the member of the Group Rathinam of Bell Society which is a partner for Sterlite Women empowerment Project. In the group, the members decided to lend her Rs.15,000 as loan and they have given period of 15 months’ time to repay.

Ms.Shanti successfully started the hotel which starts functioning from morning 8 a.m  till  night 8 p.m. The general sales continues throughout the day like hot drinks, coffee, tea, cool drinks, breakfast, lunch, dinner etc. Since the shop located near the lorry shed, the drivers and cleaners prefer to have food from this hotel and Ms.Shanti has started to build a life out of it. She is earning a profit of around Rs 700 per day which helps to repay her loan.

Sterlite Copper celebrates International Women’s day

Tuticorin: Sterlite Copper observed International women’s day at Alagar Mahal here on Thursday.

Mr.P.Ramnath, Chief Executive Officer, Sterlite Copper was the Chief Guest of the programme and presented the awards for 13 best women entrepreneurs. Prizes were also distributed to the winners of various sports events organised by Sterlite recently. Mr.P.Ramnath listed out the various community welfare activities carried out by the company for the benefit of women.

Cultural events were also part of the event and around 1500 members of Sterlite Self Help Groups (SHGs) participated in the event.

Mr.K.S.Gnanasekar, Deputy Commissioner, Central Excise, Thoothukudi, Mr.Sridhar Narasimhan, Associate  Vice President, Finance, Col.S.Krishnan, General Manager-Admin & Security, Sterlite Copper, Mrs.Jeyakani, Director, Thayagam Social Welfare trust, Mr.Jesudasan, Director, Bell Education Society, Ms.Dhanalakshmi, Director, Thulasi Social Trust, and Ms.Dency, Director, Able Foundation participated in the event.

Photo Cut - Line: Mr.P.Ramnath, Chief Executive Officer, Sterlite Copper presenting an award to one of the best Women Entrepreneurs in the women’s day celebration organised by Sterlite Copper.

About Sterlite Women Empowerment Project

Sterlite Women Empowerment Project (SWEP) was conceived to help rural and coastal women become self confident and economically independent. It aims to promote family savings among self help groups (SHGs), which also allows them to take up projects that generate additional income for their families. Launched in March 2005, and engaged with NGOs as project partners, SWEP has inspired the forming of more than 1000 SHGs covering 15,000 rural women from the marginalised sections of society. From the time of its inception till 2011, more than 160 groups have taken up profitable income generation activities to raise additional income to families, and the combined savings of these SHGs today amounts to Rs.4.5 crore.

The current financial year was given focus for initiating new income generation activities for the existing women groups. As on date, 86 families were covered during the reporting year in partnership with 4 NGOs.

For further information, please contact:

L.N.Balakrishnan Head - Public Relations Sterlite Copper

ln.balakrishnan@vedanta.co.in Tel:  +91 461 424 2926

Disclaimer

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “should” or “will.” Forward–looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different that those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

Sterlite Copper organises ‘Steco Fest-2012’ for college students

Thoothukudi: Sterlite Copper organised Steco Fest-2012, an inter-collegiate cultural competition for students of arts, science and engineering colleges of Tuticorin and Tirunelveli districts here at Infant Jesus College, Vallanadu, Thoothukudi on Sunday.

More than 700 students from 44 colleges from both the districts participated in the event. Mr.P.Ramnath, Chief Executive Officer, Sterlite Copper distributed the prizes and certificates to the winners and addressed the gathering. Mr.P.Ramnath, also listed out the various initiatives being carried out by the corporate for the benefit of students in Thoothukudi.

The competitions included Ads Up, Rangoli, Collage, Elocution (English), Elocution (Tamil), Team dance, Solo performance, Fashion show and Quiz. Individual first, second and third prizes were given to all the winners of the events. Government College of Engineering, Tirunelveli was adjudged as overall champions of Steco Fest-2012. Students of Government College of Engineering, Tirunelveli received the championship trophy and a cash award of Rs 30,000. MDT Hindu College, Tirunelveli bagged the second place and were awarded with a trophy and  

Rs 20,000.

Details of the competitions and winners are as under:-

Competition	Winners
Rangoli	I – VOC College, Tuticorin II – Wavoo Wajeeha Women’s College III – MDT Hindu College
Ads Up	I – Govt Law College, Tirunelveli II – VOC College, Tuticorin III - MDT Hindu College
Solo Performance	I – GVN College II – Sadakathullah Appa College III – Rose Mary College
Team Dance	I – Sarah Tucker College II – GVN College III – St.Xavier’s College
Collage	I - Wavoo Wajeeha Women’s College II – VOC College, Tuticorin III - Sarah Tucker College
Elocution (English)	I - Wavoo Wajeeha Women’s College II – Infant Jesus College of Engineering III - Sadakathullah Appa College
Elocution (Tamil)	I - MDT Hindu College II – VOC College, Tuticorin III - Sarah Tucker College
Fashion Show	I – Government College of Engineering II – Holy Cross Home Science College III - Rose Mary College
Quiz	I – MDT Hindu College II – Government College of Engineering III - GVN College

Mr.B.Stephen, Chairman, Infant Jesus group of Colleges, Mr.Ghosh, Dean, Infant Jesus College of Engineering,  Col.S.Krishnan, General Manager, Admin & Security, Sterlite Copper and employees of Sterlite were present during the event.

Photo Cut-Line: Government College of Engineering, Tirunelveli receiving the championship trophy from Mr.P.Ramnath, Chief Executive Officer, Sterlite Copper during Steco Fest-2012 organised by  Sterlite Copper at Infant Jesus College on Sunday.

Disclaimer

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “should” or “will.” Forward–looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different that those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

¬¬Making of an entrepreneur!!!

Ms Chitra, a resident of Tuticorin hails from a poor family. She is married and blessed with 2 children aged 12 and 9. Her husband is a driver, and Chitra is a house wife but has a special skill in doing hand works. With a minimum salary of husband, Chitra found difficult to run the family. She was interested to take up any microenterprise but no capital was available to start up any business. She came to know about a Self Help Group from her neighbors. She became the member of the Group Vannila of Social trust which is a partner of Sterlite Women Empowerment Project. The SHG staff from the Sterlite Women Entrepreneur project encouraged her and paved a way to live  and to earn.

Being a member in the SHG she received a loan of Rs.5,000/ to start her own business. She decided to invest this money in one of the micro enterprise. Once during the SHG meet, when members shared with each other about the possession of their individual skills, Ms.Chitra informed the group that she possessed good selling skills.

She was then motivated by the SHG members and Sterlite officials to invest on a good business and she chose the enterprise of selling mineral water.

Chitra, gets water cans from a vendor and sells out to the factories, where it is used for the workers. She gets the other orders locally from the houses, and watercans are supplied with the help of her husband. She is utilizing the vehicle of her husband, to disburse the water cans to the customers. She is earning Rs 105 – Rs 130 every day as profit and believes that she can run her family’s life in a big way and save money for their children’s future.