The Gems and Jewelry Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) may have given new meaning to the adage “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend.”
Dinesh Navadia, president of the Surat Diamond Accosiation (SDS) has commended the state and central government and the GJEPC for providing employment for the tribal women of India. In the past seven months, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of tribal women being employed as diamond cutters and polishers.
The villages of Surat, Tapi and Dang have seen a nearly ten-fold increase in women diamond polishers. Now, one out of eight diamond cutters and polishers is an Indian tribal female. In Surat, which leads the world in diamond polishing, the numbers are one in twelve tribal women diamond polishers.
Surat’s small and medium diamantaries have established up to 130 units in the tribal areas of Mandvi, Jhankhvav, Vankal, Dang, Ahwa and bordering Nandurbar, Maharashra and Vansda. Employees in the business in these areas total around 21,000. Just since October, The number of regional women employees has increased from just a few hundred to nearly 2,500. Manji Beladia set up a business in Vankal village and reports that there are now 175 workers that include 65 women.
Before working in the diamond industry, women mostly made local crafts or worked on construction sites. Jasuben Vasava, a female tribal worker from Nandola village in Surat’s Mangrol Taluka says that she earned Rs 3,000 from making crafts of bamboo. Now she takes home Rs 8,000 a month as a diamond polisher. Jamni Mahala is an apprentice in the business, taking home Rs 5,000 per month. What is the reason for the sudden surge in women diamond polishers? Ramesh Kukadia, owner of Oriana diamonds says, “Women learn this skill faster than men.”
